Suite Life on Campus, Season 4
by SprouseGoose
Summary: The fourth and final season of SLOC finds everyone beginning their senior years of college and planning for their lives after they graduate.
1. Get a Room!

_Episode 1_

_"Get a Room!"_

_I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did._

_Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them._

_Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves._

_And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so..._

_Zack & Cody's Suite_

Cody continued sitting on the couch shaking his head as his mind was still going in a million different directions. Looking down at the letter from Dr. Hyden in his hands, he read it again thoroughly to make sure his eyes hadn't been playing tricks on him the first time. And as he read it and the form letter from HMS, it could see that it really did say what he thought it had said. Despite the seemingly impossibility of it, he had indeed been accepted to Harvard Medical School and been offered the same scholarship package that Bailey had. But even seeing it in writing right in front of him, he was still having trouble grasping what had just happened and the magnitude of it. For the first time in a long time, he felt completely lost. On one hand, getting this kind of offer was something he had dreamed about for a long, long time, and he had worked hard his whole life to make it a possibility. But on the other hand, could he really let go what he had endured to get it? As confusion and uncertainty continued to totally engulf him, Bailey could see the internal struggle he was having displayed in the expression on his face.

"Cody? Honey? Tell me what you're thinking right now..."

He shook his head and actually began to laugh. "I don't think I can, Bails. That would require me to actually know what I was thinking myself. I mean, after that interview, I never thought in a million years I would be holding a letter like this in my hands. And now that I do, I guess a part of me can somewhat understand the methods to Dr. Hyden's madness, but I have to wonder if this is too little too late..."

"Well, whether or not it is is your decision to make, Sweetie."

Cody just looked over lat her. "Oh no its not! This decision is OUR decision to make. As you said, we're a team. Bailey, this effects you just as much as it does me."

She paused, smiled and nodded. "I know, but I'm not the one who had to go through the hell that you did. While I can empathize with what happened, I can never truly understand what that would have felt like. Cody, I was totally appalled at what Dr. Hyden did, and I wanted to run back in there and tell him off myself. But like you said, I can somewhat understand now why he did what he did. On some level, it does make a lot of sense. But he was right, it was very unorthodox and extremely risky. I mean...I was always taught that you can attract more flies with honey than with vinegar. Just know what ever you decide, I will support you 100%..."

He smiled at her. "I appreciate that, but in fourteen months, you're going to be my wife. I think that gives you the right to tell me what to do here..."

Bailey's eyes went wide. "Cody! I would never..."

Cody laughed again as cut her off. "I was just joking...sort of." He paused. "But am I being too...stubborn and hard headed here again? Am I letting my anger and my hurt get the best of me again? Am I letting it cloud my vision again as to what's really important?"

She stopped and slightly shuddered. "Unfortunately, we both know what its like to let our emotions get the best of us without knowing the full story, don't we?"

Cody nodded sadly. "Yeah, we do. And I know we vowed to never let anything like that happen ever again..."

"And we won't. I think it says a lot about the both of us that we are able to sit here semi calmly and talk about this without doing something stupid. I just wish we had had this kind of self restraint back in Paris..."

"You and me both, Sweetie...you and me both."

"I guess we can safely say we've learned our lesson from that then. And I think this situation has taught us a couple more."

He just looked at her curiously. "You do? What lessons would those be?"

She smiled. "We learned to always be true to ourselves no matter what. We learned that no matter what situation we find ourselves in to hold our heads up high. And we learned first hand that the old cliche about it always being the darkest before the dawn is actually true..."

Cody couldn't help but chuckle. "Yeah, I guess we did. But, we're still left with the million dollar question on the table - what do we do about this?"

Bailey paused as she considered that. "Well, I think it best that neither of us make any kind of rash decision right now. Lets give it some time and distance. Lets give us a chance to cool down and let our emotions settle. Maybe after we do that, we'll both have a better idea of what it is we really want to do?"

"I think you're right. Which means we continue on with taking the interviews that we have scheduled already." He paused and chuckled again. "Of course, you also know this means we can't tell anyone around here that we got these letters, right?"

She frowned. "Why not?"

Cody smiled. "Because I know my Mom. Consciously, she would tell us to do whatever is best for us. But subconsciously, you know she would be doing everything she could to push us into choosing Harvard. You don't think she would be over the moon having us back in Boston full time?"

Bailey had to nod. "Yeah, I think you're probably right about that..." She paused. "What about Zack and Maya though? I mean they already know that we interviewed there and how it went."

"True, but you heard what Zack said earlier. They have enough to deal with right now with their own situation. It wouldn't be fair of us to try to add our problems on to what they've already got on their plates."

"Good point. They don't need to hear about our problems too"

"Besides, we don't know. Maybe in our travels, we'll find a medical school that makes us completely forget about Harvard's offers. It'll feel like the perfect place for us and make our decision an easy one to make. All of this will hopefully become completely moot then..."

She smiled at him. "Now I know you're right. I guess instead of burning those letters we should lock them away somewhere safe. And once we do, I say we forget all about them for a while. After all, we do need to rest up for the rest of today, right? I mean, we do have interviews at Tufts tomorrow, UMASS over in Worcester on Wednesday, and then BU's medical school on Thursday. Then Thursday night, we catch our flight out to Kansas City and interview at KU on Friday..." She paused and teased him. "Thankfully, with you around, I won't need to use the one hour dry cleaner down the street..."

He laughed. "Hey, any reason I can give you to keep me around works in my book."

Bailey wrapped her arms around his neck as he instinctively wrapped his around her waist. "You know I already have all the reasons in the world to keep you around. Most importantly, I love you and want to spend the rest of my life with you...whether the next step in our adventure be here in Boston or wherever it takes us."

"Right back at you." He leaned in and kissed her. "Thank you for being so understanding about all of this, Sweetheart. When it comes to me getting letters from institutes of higher education that don't go the way I expect them to, you've been my rock. And not just in those situations - you're always my rock."

She just smiled. "Just like you're mine. And you always will be."

He just shook his head. "This is kind of ironic, don't you think?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, we had to fight like mad to get me into Yale so we could be there together. Now, we've been offered free rides to the best medical school in the country, and we're debating whether or not we want to accept it."

"True, but both times, we were in it together no matter what. Now, we have the rest of today to do whatever we want. Any ideas on how we should spend it?"

Cody paused before grinning. "Ohhh...I might be able to think of a few."

Bailey just gave him a look. "Oh really? Hmmm...I think I'd love to hear what they are."

He leaned in and gave her a much deeper and more passionate kiss. "Well, all of them include a lot of that..."

She giggled. "I'm even more intrigued now..."

He grinned again and looked around. "And to think...we have the place all to ourselves for a little while..."

_The Other Side of Town_

Throughout the rest of their lunch, Maya kept up her acting job as best as she could. And she must have been pretty convincing as Zack was totally buying that she didn't think him going on the boat for the summer was going to be a big deal. But, he did know better than to keep bringing it up, so he deftly changed the subject back to how her final had gone and other subjects. After they finished eating, Zack and Maya were leaving the restaurant and trying to decide what to do for the rest of their day. And that's when Zack came up with an idea.

"Why don't we go ahead and get all of your things packed up and moved over to the Tipton? I mean, we both have today off, so it would make the most sense. That way, it will be all done, and we don't have to worry about it the rest of the week."

Maya nodded. "I think that would be a good idea. Might as well get it out of the way. And I really should have a talk with Cody and Bailey when we get to the Tipton to make sure we're all on the same page about this summer..."

"That shouldn't be a problem. They're probably unpacking as we speak." Zack paused and shook his head. "Hold on a minute, I'll be right back. I need to run back inside and get a couple of dollars in change."

She just looked at him funny. "What for?"

He laughed. "For the parking meter outside your dorm. Its Monday, so there won't be any free places to park anywhere near your dorm. Plus, I don't want to give the parking Nazis on campus a reason to ticket me."

She laughed too. "Ahh...Gotcha. Yeah, I've slowly realized they don't have souls. I was on my way to work one afternoon, and I saw one of them writing up a ticket for a car that still had three minutes left on the meter. I just walked up to it and put another quarter in it. I've never seen someone's face turn so red so fast before in my life. I mean, she was actually angry that I did that. It was a good thing I wasn't heading back into my dorm or else I think she might have followed me in to try to find out my name..."

"I wouldn't be surprised if she would have. I heard from a guy in one of my classes that his grades were withheld last semester because he had two unpaid parking tickets. That's why I'm glad I take the subway everyday. But that reminds me though - I need to call Esteban to make sure he has a parking sticker for the Tipton garage ready for us to pick up when we get back there."

Once they got to Maya's dorm, they quickly packed up all of her things in a little under an hour. Loading up Zack's car took another half hour, and once they were done, it was off to pick up Maya's car. Thirty more minutes later, they both pulled into the Tipton parking garage. While Zack began unloading all of her things onto a luggage cart, Maya ran upstairs to get the parking sticker. Thirty minutes later, they were pushing the cart off of the elevator on to the 23rd floor. And when they opened the door to the suite, they heard what sounded like a very intense make out session coming from the other side of the couch. And when they heard the door open, Cody and Bailey immediate sat up and looked behind them to see Zack and Maya just giving them a look.

"Get a room, you two!"

Realizing they had been busted, Bailey blushed slightly, but Cody just shook his head and sighed. "Not again! First Kirby, now you two. I can't wait till we have our own dorm room next year!" He looked at his brother and smirked. "But as for us getting a room, what do you think this is?"

Zack laughed. "You know what I meant. And nice lipstick smudges their, Broseph. And if I may say, I think you've definitely found your color..."

Cody rolled his eyes. "Gee...thanks."

Zack turned to Maya and whispered. "I should warn you - in case you need them, I have ear plugs in the top drawer of my nightstand. I'm not saying you're definitely going to have to use them, but I've used them before just so I didn't accidentally hear something I don't want to hear..."

Maya couldn't help herself and began cracking up laughing. "I'll keep that in mind..."

Bailey just looked back and forth between them. "What's so funny?"

"Oh, nothing. I was just telling Maya she might want to knock from now on before she comes in..."

Bailey blushed again. "Zack!"

He laughed again. "Hey, don't do the crime if you can't take the ridicule later! Besides, you shouldn't be embarrassed about this. I mean - you have agreed to marry him after all..."

"Still!"

Maya figured it would be a good time to change the subject. "Are you two sure you don't mind me staying here this summer? With Zack gone, you two ordinarily would have the place to yourselves, and something like this wouldn't happen..."

Cody shook his head and sighed. "No, we don't mind at all. We just thought we were going to have a little more time alone together than we actually did..."

"Well, if it helps, I can give you guys my schedule so you'll know when you will..."

"Don't worry about it. In fact, we actually think you'll be easier to live with than Zack..." He smirked at his brother. "I can almost guarantee you'll be a lot neater and won't put empty milk cartons back in the refrigerator..."

Maya smiled. "You don't have to worry about that from me. And I really do appreciate this. For some reason, BU chose this summer as the perfect time to repaint and put in new carpeting in my dorm. I'm not sure why though. Its a college dorm, so it'll be a mess again within a month of people moving back in."

Bailey smiled back. "We know all about that. This time tomorrow, they'll be tearing apart our old dorm rooms too..."

Zack just shook his head. "I can believe how much you guys lucked out by that. I wish I had some relative who suddenly became a billionaire who wanted to show me some charity and give me a bunch of money..."

Cody grinned. "Well, since if you had a relative like that, they'd be my relative too, so, I wouldn't have a problem with that in the least..."

"All I know is that you can expect us to make another trip to Yale sometime next year to check out your new digs..."

Bailey laughed. "Are you thinking of coming back for the big Halloween party?"

Zack just glared at her. "No thank you!"

Cody teased him. "Awww. Afraid you won't remember the party again or that you'd get sick on the drive back home?"

Zack glared at him. "Easy there, Codester..."

"Or what? Remember, you still need me to make a couple of lists for you before you ship out..."

Zack just shook his head and began grumbling. "Whatever..."

Bailey turned to Cody. "Speaking of our new dorm, remind me to take the floor plans with us when we fly out on Friday. I want to look at it and see if my plan will actually work."

Cody nodded. "Good call..."

Maya spoke up. "What kind of plan do you have?"

Briefly, Bailey explained it to her, and Zack kept shaking his head. "Unbelievable..." He paused. "Oh yeah, I noticed you both got envelopes from Harvard's Medical School in the mail today? What were those all about?"

Cody and Bailey just looked at each other. "Oh, those? Harvard just sent us thank you notes for us coming in to interview. But, we immediately just ripped them up..."

"Yeah, we thought it was like pouring salt into the wounds after what that professor did to me..."

Zack nodded. "Yeah, that really wasn't very cool..." He turned to Maya. "Come on, lets get you settled in here."

Cody looked up. "By the way, Zack, when do you ship out exactly?"

"Three weeks from yesterday. I have to work the next two weeks, and then Moseby is giving me the week before I leave off to get done everything I need to get done."

Maya sighed. "And unfortunately, the week he has off is the week I start summer school. Talk about lousy timing."

Bailey was about to say something when her cell phone began vibrating. When she checked it, she saw she had a text message from London. _"On my way back to the hotel. Be up at my penthouse in ten minutes!"_

She sighed. "Great. Looks like London was serious about us starting to plan things as soon as we got back." She shrugged. "At least she's starting to write out words properly in her texts now..."

Zack smirked at them. "Awww...poor babies. Have to listen to London help you plan your luau reception."

Cody perked up and turned to Bailey. "Luau...that's not a half bad idea..."

Bailey nodded. "You're right - it isn't. But I'm thinking more for the rehearsal dinner though. We need to have a place for people to dance at the reception. And after we danced on the beach on New Year's Eve in Miami, I think we should avoid that at all costs. We don't want one of our relatives to accidentally fall and hurt themselves..."

Cody cringed as he pictured that happening in his mind. "Yeah, good call."

_London's Penthouse_

Exactly ten minutes after they had received their summons from London, Cody and Bailey were standing outside of her penthouse and knocked on the door. And immediately, London opened it up and pulled both of them inside almost causing them to trip and fall. They looked at her in surprise, but she just shook her head at them.

"You're late!"

Cody just gave her an incredulous look. "But you said be here in ten minutes, and that was exactly ten minutes ago..."

London rolled her eyes. "Do you two realize we only have fourteen months before this wedding of yours is supposed to take place? We've got a long way to go and not a lot of time to get there! We need to get to work ASAP!"

Bailey just shook her head in disbelief. "London, we understand that, but we've only been back in Boston for a few hours now. We haven't even finished unpacking our things yet..."

"You can do that later. Now, do you at least have the guest lists I asked you guys for the last time I saw you two?"

Cody looked away. "Ummm...well...sort of."

London gave him a dirty look. "Sort of? What does that mean exactly?"

"Well, my Dad emailed me his list, but we haven't seen Mom yet since we've been home to get hers. And we were planning on getting the list from Bailey's family when we went to Kettlecorn this weekend."

London just looked back and forth between them and began shaking her head. "You guys are killing me here!" She took a deep breath to calm herself. "Okay, from now on, I'm putting you guys on a schedule and giving you strict deadlines. Its the summer, so I think you guys can handle that. Now, here's the way things are going to go for the next little while. To start with, the wedding coordinator from the Grand Hawaiian will be in town the the first week of June. We ARE going to be meeting with her over dinner, understand me?"

Cody and Bailey just nodded. "Yes, London..."

"Good. She will know more about what we have to work with out there and what will be our best bets. And, I've spoken with Chef Paulo, and he would like to do your wedding cake and coordinate the food at the reception for you as a wedding gift to you both."

Bailey nodded again. "Of course. We'd be honored."

"Glad that's taken care of..." London smirked at them. "Now, can I trust you two to schedule an appointment to meet with him or do I need to do that for you?"

Cody sighed. "We'll do it..."

"Good boy. Now, moving on, I need you guys to start thinking about your wedding parties. Namely, how big do you want them to be and who you want to be in them."

Bailey turned to Cody. "Yeah, I guess that's something we should have already been thinking about..." She turned back to London. "I promise we'll start thinking about it as soon as possible."

"Yes, you will. Finally, the last thing we need to discuss is setting up an appointment for you to meet with Arturo. Once I told him that you were getting married, he insisted on designing what you're going to wear."

Cody turned to Bailey. "I guess that's all you. So, whenever works for you..."

London just gave him another look. "Hardly! You need to be there too, Brain Boy! You two are planning on getting married on the beach. Newsflash! Tuxedos don't work for beach weddings!"

Cody frowned. "They don't?" He paused to consider that. "Yeah, I guess they wouldn't. I really hadn't considered that before..."

London sighed. "I swear...if it weren't for me, you two would probably end up getting married at city hall or in Vegas!"

"We really do appreciate all of your help, London. I guess there is just a lot of things like that that hadn't occurred to us yet."

She rubbed her eyes. "Okay, I understand that. I mean...its not like you two have any experience putting on a wedding before." She paused as she remembered something. "Except for Esteban's!" She paused again to calm herself down. "But Cody did end up getting way too stressed out over it." London shook her head. "Anyways, lets look at it this way. You both have your homework assignments. Maybe phrasing it that way will actually motivate you both to get everything I've asked for done. Now, I'll see you both in a week or so. And when I tell you two its time to meet then, don't be late!"

Bailey just nodded. "We won't, and we promise we'll work on everything you've mentioned."

"You better!"

Once they left London's suite, they stood outside in the hallway waiting for the elevator to arrive. And while they did, Cody turned to Bailey and laughed.

"I now understand why Moseby said London planning his wedding would have caused him to lose his hair if he had any..."

She couldn't help herself and laughed too. "I think I can too..." She paused. "But, she is making us think of things we hadn't before, so that's a good thing. And its not like she's asking us to do anything all that difficult..."

"Yet..." He smiled at her. "You know, its still not too late for us to elope..."

"Cody!"

"I'm just kidding, Sweetie." He smiled at her again. "You know I will do everything in my power to give you the wedding of your dreams..."

She smiled back at him. "I know you will. And I think if we can get through this summer, everything will be taken care of, and we won't have to worry about it after that..."

"I sure hope so..." He chuckled. "Because I've seen what I look like bald, and its not a pretty sight..."

_Zack and Cody's Suite_

After getting Maya settled into the suite, she and Zack were a little worn out. After all, both had been up early that morning - Zack thanks to Moseby and Maya so she could cram one last time for her final that afternoon. So, once they had finished getting her unpacked, they both sunk back into the couch so they could catch their breaths and take it easy for a little bit. And as they did, Zack looked over at her.

"I forgot to ask earlier. Did you ever get your summer school schedule to fit your work schedule?"

Maya nodded. "Actually, its going to work our perfectly. I already told you I'll be in class from 9:00-10:30 every morning, but my lab will be on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 11:00-2:30. I thought that might be a problem at work, but it turns out it won't be. And on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons, I'm actually going to get to do real physical therapy work at the fit&rec center. The head physical therapist wants to borrow me and have me help out on those days from whenever I can get there until 7:30 those nights."

"So, you'll actually be getting to do what your studying for?"

She nodded. "Yeah. And on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, I'll still be teaching swim lessons as usual from 11:00 until 6:30. So, I'll still be getting in close to 30 hours a week. And if I do a good job with the physical therapy part, they may want to move me over to it full time come this fall."

"Well, congratulations then, Babe! You've earned it. I guess we'll both be doing new kinds of work this summer..."

Maya could only nod. "Yeah, I guess we will..."

Zack just looked over at her before shaking his head. "Okay, what is it?"

That caught her off guard. "What's what?"

"You said earlier you could tell when something was bothering me. Well, that works two ways, Babe. I can tell something is bothering you too. So, are you going to tell me what it is or not?"

"Zack..."

"Look, I remember Cody telling me that in every relationship, you have to have honest and open communication. And, I think he's actually right. So, tell me. What's up?"

Maya closed her eyes and sighed. "You remember how I tried to make you going on the ship this summer not that big of a deal?"

"Yeah..."

"Well, I really want to believe that, but I keep having these nagging thoughts pop into my head. I know you and Moseby have both told me everything will be alright..."

Zack cut her off. "Moseby? What are you talking about?"

Briefly, Maya recounted her finding Moseby waiting outside of her final and the conversation he had. "Don't blame him though. He was trying to make things easier on everyone..."

He just sat there for a minute thinking. "Okay, but what are these nagging thoughts you're having? Tell me about them..."

She turned to face him. "Well, I hate myself for thinking about it, but I can't help but remember what happened when you went to the Gemini Project when I wasn't around. I guess part of me is afraid that with me not around you everyday, that..."

He cut her off again. "You're not saying what I think you're saying are you? Because if you're worried about me looking at other women while I'm away, then don't. Because you have absolutely nothing to worry about!"

"I know, and the logical, reasonable side of me knows that too. But the insecure, irrational part of me is afraid...I mean, I've heard all about the area code rule and the other things the Guyble says..."

Zack just looked at her in surprise. "You've heard of the Guyble?"

"Of course I have. Its not that much different from the Girble."

He laughed. "That's twice I've heard of its existence. But you should know something. I've completely ignored everything the Guyble has said for a couple of years now. In fact, I've done some things that it strictly prohibits..."

"You have? Like what?"

"You remember when I went shopping for you before spring break and what I bought you?"

Maya nodded. "Yeah..."

Zack smiled. "Well, it said if your girl ever asked you to do that, that you should run for the hills. But, I didn't. Maya, I've grown up a lot in the past few years. I'm more mature. And I am strictly a one woman kind of guy now. The area code rule means nothing to me anymore. I am firmly and completely committed to you. You have absolutely nothing to worry about, but if there is something I can do to convince you of that, I'm all ears..." He paused. "You want me to get your name tattooed on my arm to show everyone where my heart lies?"

She just looked at him and couldn't help but smile. "No, you don't have to do that. Just offering is enough to convince me that I was being silly..."

"I'm glad because I really don't like needles. Besides, I'll be around Esteban and Francesca all summer. They wouldn't tolerate me doing anything stupid..."

"Yeah, that's true." She shook her head and sighed again. "I'm sorry for being so crazy and unreasonable..."

"Well..." He teased her. "...you're a female, so you couldn't help it."

Maya's eyes went wide. "Zack Martin!"

He began laughing. "I'm just kidding!"

"You better be!"

"I am, I was just trying to get a rise out of you. So, are we okay?"

She nodded. "Yeah, we're okay..." She paused and smiled. "Just remember though, you better be a good boy because I am a green belt now..."

"I know you are..." Zack paused as he thought of something else. "Maya, I want you to do me a favor though."

"What's that?"

"If anyone causes you any problems while I'm gone like that Bruno guy tried to, please don't try to handle it all by yourself. I'll be back the week of the 4th to help out, and in the meantime, you'll have Cody and Bailey around to help too. Those two have had their share of dealing with idiots, and we all know Bailey knows how to hogtie someone..."

Maya smiled again. "Zack, I'll be fine. If anyone messes with me, they'll be in for a rude awakening." She leaned in and kissed him. "But thank you for being worried about me..."

"Of course I'm going to worry about you while I'll be far away and not be able to do anything to help."

"You'll have no reason to. Every night, I'll be back here before eight o'clock, so I won't have to ride the subway after dark by myself..."

"True..." He paused. "Still, it might not be a bad idea to get you one of those key chain mace thingies that Cody gave Bailey..."

"If that will make you feel better, then fine."

"It will..." He smiled again. "Now, you need to make me a list of souvenirs I can try to find you whenever I actually get to get off the boat in ports..."

"You don't have to buy me anything..."

"I know, but I want to. You're my lady, and I want to spoil you rotten." He paused. "But I'll forewarn you, don't expect me to eat exotic animal parts just to get you something you really want. I did that once in Morocco to help Cody out, and I still get queasy thinking about it."

She laughed. "Awww...my poor baby. Was it really that bad?"

Zack shuddered thinking about it. "Uh huh. Maybe I should pack my bucket with me?"

"Maybe so. But think of the bright side. You probably won't have to pack very much else. I assume they are going to be providing you a uniform to wear everyday, right?"

Zack paused again. "You know, I hadn't even thought of that yet. I would hope so because my work clothes are designed for Boston. I don't think they would work to well in a tropical climate. I just hope I don't have to dress like how Moseby used to have to..."

Maya shuddered that time. "Gee...thanks. Now all I can see are the knee socks..."

He laughed. "I know the feeling. But I'll ask Moseby tomorrow and find out..." He grinned. "But until then, there is something else I want to think about instead..."

"Yeah? What's that?"

He leaned and kissed her. "This..."

She giggled. "Sounds good to me..."

"So, we're definitely good then, right?"

Maya grinned and leaned in and kissed him again. "What does that tell you?"

"Works for me!"

As they began kissing again, the door to the suite swung open. And when it did, Cody and Bailey just shook their heads and laughed.

"Get a room, you two!"

___To be Continued..._


	2. The Wisdom of Clyde

_Episode 2_

_"The Wisdom of Clyde"_

_I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did._

_Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them._

_Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves._

_And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so..._

_Boston_

The next few days, Cody and Bailey traveled to and had their interviews at the Tufts, UMASS and Boston University medical schools. And while all three of them seemed like fine institutions of higher learning, Cody and Bailey couldn't help but to compare them with the first two they had already interviewed at. So, while all three were good schools, they just couldn't measure up with either Harvard or Yale. And it wasn't from a lack of trying. All three of the schools were putting on the full court press on Cody and Bailey as it wasn't everyday they had two 4.0 students from Yale on their campuses. But it would be for naught as neither Cody or Bailey could really see themselves going to any of them. For Tufts and BU, they just didn't have the same top end facilities or level of faculties as the two Ivy League schools they were comparing them to. And for UMASS, while it was a top 50 medical school in the country, its downfall was its location. Worcester was an hour away from Boston, and neither Cody or Bailey really cared for the city or the neighborhood surrounding the school. (**AN: No offense to anyone who actually lives in Worcester**). When they got back to the Tipton early Thursday afternoon, they had to begin packing immediately for their trip to Kansas. And while they did, they discussed their past three interviews.

"Bails, do you think we're being too...finicky here? It seems like we're focusing more on each school's negatives as opposed to their positives..."

She smiled. "I don't think we are. Cody, we're looking for the location where we'll be living for the next four years as well as where we're going to get the educations we need to prepare us for our careers. I think we have the right to be a little choosy and picky if we want to be. I mean...I remember all the research you told me you did when your Dad said he was going to buy you a car. And Cody, that was just for a car..."

He laughed. "Yeah, I guess you're right. I guess I just have this image in my head of what I'm expecting the perfect medical school to be like, but I just haven't seen it yet..." He paused and sighed. "Well, I haven't seen it again..."

"I know. Scholastically and environmentally, Harvard had everything we could have hoped for. But, its not our fault they chose to sabotage their chances with us..."

"Well, Yale did come pretty close too."

Bailey nodded as she began placing some more clothes into their bag. "Yeah, it did." She paused this time. "But as nice as it was, it wasn't quite as nice as Harvard. It was kind of like the Mr. Pibb to Harvard's Dr. Pepper. Still very good, but not quite the same. And, Sweetie, like I said, I'd have no problems whatsoever sticking around New Haven for four more years either. I love it there, and we'd have our friends around for at leas two of those years." She paused. "But..."

Cody walked up behind her and slowly began to rub her shoulders. "I know. Its kind of like we're ready for the next adventure in our lives. First the boat, then Yale. I think deep down, both of us are probably read to move on to somewhere else. I just hope we can find the right place for our next chapters."

She turned and smiled at him. "We will. I have every confidence we will. For some reason, everything always seems to work out for us in the end."

"Yeah, I guess it does, and I hope it continues to." He checked his watch. "But if we don't hurry, we're going to miss our flight. Our flight to Kansas City takes off in less than three hours."

Bailey nodded. "You're right. You put both of our suits in the garment bag, and I'll finish packing up this one with the rest of what we'll need. Since we'll be back Sunday night, we don't need all that much..."

Cody laughed. "You realize Sunday is going to be an extremely long day, don't you?"

"I know, after church and a Mother's Day brunch in Kettlecorn, we'll hop a flight and have a Mother's Day dinner here in Boston after we land."

"Not to mention that our first day of work is on Monday."

"Oh, I remember that too. I'm pretty sure I'll sleep well Sunday night."

Cody shook his head and sighed. "I don't know about you, but I'll be glad when this is all over. I know I enjoyed my three years on the boat, but I don't see how Dad did it. Just the thought of all the travel we're going to do this summer wares me out..."

"I know, but think of it this way..." Bailey smiled. "...after this summer, the next time we fly anywhere but to Kansas will be to Hawaii for our wedding..."

He smiled back. "Now that sounds good to me. And at least all of these flights will give us time to sit back and think about London's homework for us."

"True..." Bailey laughed. "Though, I don't think London will buy us not doing it because there was a crocodile in the hotel that ate it..."

Both laughed as they continued to pack their bags, and when they were done, they double checked to make sure they had everything they needed for their trip. They had their flight confirmations numbers, their rental car reservation, their directions to their hotel in Kansas City, Kansas from the airport, their hotel confirmation number, their letters from KU, their directions on the best way to get to Kettlecorn from Kansas City, and of course, their Mother's Day gifts for both Eunice and Grammy.

"You ready, Bails?"

She nodded. "Yeah, Kansas City, here we come..."

_Boston University Fitness & Recreation Center_

That exact same Thursday was also the second day that Maya had been working with the physical therapy section of the BU fit&rec center. And after her first week doing that, everything seemed to be going pretty smoothly. Already on her second day, she was assisting a full-time physical therapist in putting some patients through actual exercises. But more so than that, her boss and the head physical therapist thought her other skills would make her perfect for their new aquatic therapy area. Basically, studies showed that people with leg injuries had an easier time of rehabilitating their injuries while in a pool as there would be less weight put on the affected areas. Unfortunately for Maya, so far though, they hadn't had anyone in need of it yet.

At seven thirty that evening, her shift was about to end when she saw Zack walk into the front area of the physical therapy area. Immediately, she smiled as she ran over to hug him.

"Zack? What are you doing here?"

He grinned. "Well, I thought I'd pick you up from work tonight and take you out to dinner. But if you have other plans..."

She laughed. "None that I'm aware of so that actually sounds perfect to me." She checked her watch. "My shift ends in a few minutes and then I need to change. Can you give me fifteen minutes?"

Zack teased her by checking his own wrist even though he wasn't wearing a watch. "I don't know...I'm due to ship out soon. I'm not sure I have that long."

Maya just shook her head at him. "That's still not funny when you do that. You already know I'm going to be a mess when you really do ship out."

"I know. That's why I decided to come and meet you here. I want to spend every available minute that I can with you before I do have to leave."

She smiled and leaned in and kissed him. "Good answer. And knowing you actually mean that means the world to me."

"Good. Now, why don't you go change and we'll get out of here. I probably should eat somewhat healthy tonight though. Having that Mexican buffet available to me again..." He shook his head and laughed. "Might be best that I'll be sleeping alone on those nights..."

She couldn't help but to laugh too. "Yeah, I'm thinking it probably will. I hope you can get used to sleeping in a twin bed again..."

"You're telling me. I remember those beds on the old ship. For the life of me, I don't know how Cody and Bailey can both sleep on one together comfortably like they do."

Maya smiled. "Probably because they don't mind being in such close proximity to each other..."

"Maya, you know I love you, but you've seen it yourself. When I sleep, I like to spread out..."

"Trust me...I know all about that. a few nights this week alone, you've almost kicked me out of bed."

He laughed. "I have?"

"Yes, you have. But don't worry, the only perk of you being on the boat this summer is that I'll get to spread out myself finally..."

"Sorry, Babe." He paused. "Why are we talking like this now? We can be doing this over dinner..."

Maya laughed again. "Okay, I can take a hint. I'll be right back."

Fifteen minutes later, she was changed, and they were out the door for a night out on the town. And as they left, they passed a man in his mid thirties wearing a BU polo shirt walking into the physical therapy area. Immediately, he walked up to Maya's new boss.

"I'm looking for who's in charge around here!"

She glanced up at him. "That would be me. How may I help you?"

"I'm Assistant Coach Crosby of the BU men's hockey team. We have a player who tore his ACL and had surgery on his knee about two months ago. We think he is ready to begin his physical therapy on it..."

Maya's boss just shrugged. "Alright, well, we'll try to squeeze him into our schedule then..."

The coach shook his head. "Uh uh! You don't understand. We want you to take extra special care of this guy. BU has a great chance to win the Frozen Four this year, but we won't without this kid. He also has a chance of being a first round pick in the NHL Draft. The BU Athletic Department and several very influential boosters want you to do whatever it takes to get him back to 100%. Understand what I'm saying?"

She sighed. "Yeah, I get it. We treat him like a VIP and we don't get our funding cut. Well, we have our new aquatic therapy section ready to be used. This guy can be the first person to break in the facilities for us, and we have a new student therapist whose focus will be doing that. We can handle the other things he'll need to do at any time, but she's in summer school and will only in here on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons from about 3:30-7:30. So, if you want him to do that, make sure he's here next Tuesday at 3:30..."

_Kettlecorn_

Friday afternoon about seven o'clock local time, Bailey and Cody finally pulled their rental car in front of the Pickett family farmhouse and parked it. And upon hearing the car coming in, both Clyde and Eunice stopped what they were doing in the barn and walked outside to welcome them. As Bailey and Cody got out of the car still wearing their interview suits sans jackets, her parents couldn't help but laugh at the sight in front of them.

"Well, well...don't you two look all gussied up..."

Bailey sighed. "Yeah, we do. Unfortunately, we couldn't find anywhere to change clothes once our interview and campus tour were over. That's something we're going to have to watch out for the next time. Anyways, we've had to drive the past five and a half hours wearing our dress clothes."

Cody pulled his dress shirt away from his chest and sighed himself. "We're definitely going to need a dry cleaner for these things now. And to make matters worse, I think the air conditioner on our rental care went out on us about two hours ago. So, we've been driving a mobile sauna since then." He shook his head. "I might need to borrow a pair of scissors to cut my undershirt off of me. I'm afraid it might be adhered to me now with my own sweat..."

Eunice just shook her head and laughed again. "Yeah, look in the top drawer in the guest bathroom. You two head on inside and change clothes, and we'll see you inside after we finish feeding the animals."

Twenty minutes later, both Cody and Bailey had changed clothes and were feeling much more cool and comfortable than they had been before. Of course, Cody did have to throw away his undershirt as it was now in about five different pieces. And as they walked into the kitchen, Clyde and Grammy were sitting at the table while Eunice finished cooking dinner. Now properly refreshed, they took a few moment to have proper hellos with everyone. After hugs and handshakes were doled out, Eunice spoke up again.

"So, what did you guys think of the KU Medical School?"

Bailey shrugged. "It was nice enough I guess, but there were a few things I didn't really care for. For one, I didn't like the fact that it was in a completely different city than the rest of the university. I guess seeing the medical school at Yale across campus from us undergraduates, and its students being a part of campus life made me think that was the norm. Plus, for some reason, I just didn't get the kind of vibe from it that I was hoping for. And on top of that, its an over five hour drive from here. While we'd technically be in the same state, we could almost be here just as quickly if we flew in from somewhere else."

Clyde frowned. "You could? I seem to remember you guys having a killer lay over in Atlanta one time..."

Cody smiled. "Fortunately, that won't happen ever again. Starting at the beginning of this month, there are now direct flights on another discount airline between Boston and Tulsa, Oklahoma. Bailey tells me that we're actually closer here to the airport in Tulsa here than we are to the one in Wichita."

Clyde just rubbed his chin. "Huh...I didn't know that. But now that I think about it, I guess Tulsa is probably a little closer to us here. A flight and then a quick drive north would make things easier on you two."

Eunice put her hands on her hips and shook her head at Cody and Bailey. "Well, I think you two shouldn't be too picky about medical schools until you actually get accepted to one. I'm sure you two haven't forgotten about you whole ordeal about getting into Yale together. Don't count your chickens before their hatched..."

Bailey was about to say something when she paused and turned to Cody. She gave him a questioning look, and he just shrugged his shoulders and nodded. Bailey then turned to address her family. "Actually...we have been accepted to one already...and been offered full scholarships to boot."

That caught everyone's attention. "You have? Where?"

Bailey smiled. "Harvard..."

Clyde's eyes went open in surprise. "Okay, I ain't the smartest man in the world, but haven't you told me before that its the best one in the country? If it is, why are you two even still looking at other ones?"

Cody sighed. "I can answer that one for you. You see..." And then he went on to explain in detail what had happened to him during his interview at Harvard and then them getting their acceptance letters earlier that week. "So, after the interview, I was pretty teed off at Harvard and Dr. Hyden. But now, I can see the methods to his madness and can kind of understand what he was thinking. I'm starting to think maybe I'm being unreasonable in holding on to my anger against them."

Grammy just shook her head. "I don't think so, Cody! What that guy did to you was deplorable! I don't care what he was thinking, there are just some things that you shouldn't do!"

Eunice had to nod her head. "I tend to agree. I was always taught you attract more flies with honey than vinegar."

Cody laughed. "Yeah, Bailey told me that exact same thing. But, we decided not to make any rash decisions that we would later regret. I guess the bright side is that we have learned from our past mistakes and don't want to repeat them again. So, we're still going to interviews with these other schools to see what they have to offer and to see if any of them are a better fit for us..."

Grammy and Eunice could only agree that that sounded like a good and reasonable solution, but Clyde just remained silent as if he was thinking about something. When he he thought he he was ready to add his opinion, he was cut off from saying anything when Bailey spoke up again.

"We do have some good news for everyone though while we're here. First, Momma, do you have that list of people and addresses that we want to send invitations to?"

Eunice nodded. "Yeah, I do..." She paused and smiled. "You have more wedding news, don't you?"

Bailey grinned back at her. "As a matter of fact, we do. We may have to pare the list a little though down to just family and close friends. There may not be room for everyone if we don't..."

"Room? Why wouldn't there be room?"

"I'm getting ready to tell you why, but first, I want to preface it by saying that London has volunteered to handle and pay for everything. So, you won't have to worry about anything besides just being there and walking me down the aisle. Now, with that said, Cody and I will be getting married..." Bailey paused to build up suspense before finishing. "...on a beach in Hawaii!"

Grammy, Eunice and Clyde's eyes all went wide again. "Did you just say Hawaii?"

Cody smiled. "Yeah. At the Tipton Grand Hawaiian on Maui. Everyone will stay at the resort, and London has said she will take care of transportation there for everyone. She has really taken a hands on approach to all of this. In fact, she's given us homework assignments we have to have done before we meet with her next week. But, we now have a date and a location, so invitations should be going out by the end of this summer. All that just leaves us to do now is finalize the details..."

Grammy chuckled. "Hawaii, huh? Sounds good to me! I've never been there before, but I've seen a lot of TV shows that have been set there. And I do know one thing for sure...I'm going to get Clyde in a grass skirt before I leave!"

_Boston_

On that Saturday night, Zack and Maya finally got the chance to formally celebrate their first anniversary back together without having to deal with finals or their jobs. So, they went to a new restaurant across Boston Common that they had heard good things about. And as they were eating, they were talking. Unfortunately, the topic of conversation seemed to always come back to Zack shipping out.

"So, two weeks from today, huh?"

Zack nodded. "Yeah. Fortunately, I don't have that much to do between now and then. I talked to London, and my uniform will essentially be a polo shirt with the London Inns logo on it and khaki shorts. The polo shirts have been ordered and will be provided for me at no cost, but I do need to pick up a few more pair of shorts by then. I figure if I have twelve pair, I won't have to do laundry quite as often. Other than that though, I got my passport updated before we went to the Caribbean, so that's taken care of. The only other thing I have to do is get a physical and my vaccinations updated before I go." He smiled. "So, that leaves me even more time I get to spend with you..."

Maya smiled back. "I'm glad. I just have no idea what I'm going to do with you gone. I know class and work will keep me busy during the day, but at nights, I think I'll be lost. I'm so used to spending them with you."

"You know I'll call you every night, so that's something."

"I know, but it won't be the same as actually having you within arm's reach. I'll even miss us sitting around the table together doing homework..."

He smiled. "Well, look on the bright side. You'll have two live in physics tutors to sit around the table with you to help you with your homework."

"It won't be the same though..."

"I know. I'll be seeing all kinds of things I'll want to be sharing with you, but I won't be able to."

Maya took a deep breath to keep herself from crying. "I told myself that I wouldn't cry until you actually left. And I know you'll be back before I know it, so I promised myself I'd stay strong..." Once she composed herself again, she smiled and teased him. "Besides, without you distracting me, I might be able to pull A's in both of my classes this summer..."

Zack laughed. "Gee...thanks. So, all I am to you is a distraction, huh?"

"You know what I mean. Besides, I don't want to be a burden to my two new roommates too much. I'll already feel like a third wheel as it is."

"And I won't? The only two people I'll know on the ship are actually a married couple. At least they are both semi-normal though. I've lived with Cody and Bailey that past two summers. Trust me, they're going to do things that will cause you to just shake your head. Of course, it all balances out because with them there, you're going to eat well this summer..."

Maya laughed. "Wait a minute! What kind of things will cause me to shake my head?"

He grinned. "You'll see...Lets just say they march to the beat of their own drummer. Which I guess is good for them that they have someone will enjoys that exact same kind of music..."

"Thanks, I think..." She paused. "That does reminds me though. While Esteban is a really nice guy and I can totally see why everyone likes him so much, do you think its a good idea for him to constantly say things are a disaster when you will all be out on the open seas?"

Zack thought about that and laughed again. "Good point. I'll have to see if I can break him of that habit early on. But you know, it will be a little weird being back on the ship. Well, not the same one but a similar one. I mean, Cody and Woody won't be across the hall. All of you girls won't be a few floors up. Moseby and Tut won't be there. Heck, I'll even miss Kirby too..." He paused and shuddered. "The only person I won't miss is Mr. Blanket..."

Maya smiled. "That's true. I guess I've had it in my mind that you were going back to the same old boat that we once knew, but you aren't."

"Tell me about it. I guarantee I'll get confused about where everything is now. And by the time I finally learn my way around, it'll be time for me to come back to Boston."

"Well, we'll all be here waiting for you then. And when you do, Zack, I'm not letting you go off anywhere without me ever again..."

_Kettlecorn_

On Sunday, everyone got up at the crack of dawn to go to the early Mother's Day service at the family's church. And once it was over, everyone headed back to the house for a Mother's Day brunch with almost everyone in the family in attendance. Cody and Bailey were going to be able to stay until 2:00 before they had to get back on the road to Tulsa to catch their return flight back to Boston. And after everyone was at the house to celebrate the holiday, Clyde pulled Cody to the side and asked him a favor.

"Look, this past spring, I won a raffle down at my lodge, and my prize was one of those satellite TV things and a year free subscription. Unfortunately, no around here knows how to hook this sucker up. You wouldn't happen to know how, would you?"

Cody grinned. "Well, if it came with an instruction manual, I think I can help you out..."

Forty five minutes later, they were both sitting on the roof of the family farmhouse after have installed the satellite dish and making sure it was pointing in the direction it was supposed to.

"Well, once we run the wire down to your TV and hook everything up down there, you'll soon have over 300 channels at your beck and call..."

Clyde just shook his head and laughed. "I appreciate that. You know...you've come along way since I first met you, Cody. I mean, you still may not know your way around a farm as much as someone who were raised on one, but you're definitely getting better. I wouldn't even hesitate to ask you to help out around here now..."

Cody smiled and held up his hands. "Well, I do have my gloves with me now. Besides, Bailey has really rubbed off on to me. While I'll still always be a city boy, I'd like to think I'm a small percentage farm boy now..."

"You probably are, though not as much as she is now a city girl. Besides, you've rubbed off on to her too. When she was a little girl, it seemed like she wanted nothing to do with the kitchen if she didn't have to. Now, you're teaching her how to cook, and she actually seems to like it."

"Well, I think I've shown her how tinkering with ingredients is a lot like chemistry. A little bit of this and a little bit of that can create something pretty cool..."

"If you say so..." Clyde paused. "Before we head down to finish this up, I want to take the chance to talk to you about something. About what happened to you in Boston with your interview up there..."

Cody just nodded. "Alright..."

"Now, you're a baseball fan, right?"

Cody nodded. "Yeah, I love the game. I can't explain why, but I just do."

Clyde paused to figure out how he wanted to word exactly what he wanted to say. "Okay, hear me out. To me, you getting that interview is like coming up to the plate in the bottom of the ninth in game seven of the World Series. Its a tie game and your team has the winning run on third with two outs. Its a 3-2 count, and that Dr. Hyden feller is the pitcher trying to get you out. Well, what he did would be akin to a pitcher throwing you a spit ball or using some sandpaper or vaseline..."

Cody was a little confused. "Okay..."

"My point is that he thought he was going to strike you out and show that he was better than you. He wanted to make you look foolish and used some less than...acceptable means to do it. But that didn't happen. By keeping your cool, you were able to foul those first two pitches off. That didn't deter him, so he began throwing you everything but the kitchen sink. Throughout your entire interview, you were a little upset about what he was doing, but you kept fouling everything off that he was throwing at you."

"Except that I thought I had struck out at the end..."

Clyde laughed. "Maybe so, but the truth is you kept fighting through it. In reality, you didn't strike out, but rather, you actually got the game winning hit. You just didn't know it yet. Now, you do. But right now, you are still so focused on how the at bat went that you're not seeing the big picture. You won the game, and by that I mean you got into Harvard. Son, if there is one thing I've learned in my life, if you do your best and succeed, then you've done all anyone can ever ask of you. You've earned your right to reap your reward now. That school is the best of the best, right?"

"Well...yeah."

"You and Bailey earned your right to go there. Now, I know my daughter, and I've gotten to know you pretty well too. You both like to compare yourselves against the best. I just can't see either of you running away from something like this. Instead of being upset about what happened, use it motivate you to show them that you're the best. Show them that by the time you graduate, that they should be ashamed of what they did and should be thanking their lucky stars that you graced them with your presence..."

Cody paused to consider that. "Clyde, you might be right..."

He smiled. "Think of it another way too. I'm sure you checked out Seven Seas High and Yale both to make sure they would be good fits for you, right?"

"Well, yeah...Of course"

"Bailey did the exact same thing. I even checked them both out myself to make sure both places were worthy of my daughter. And when you two have kids, I'm pretty confident you'll want them to have the best education possible too."

"Of course I will, I..." Cody stopped as he thought he knew where his soon to be father-in-law was going with this.

Clyde just grinned. "So, if its okay for you to make sure you and your future kids will have the best of the best, why can't the school do the exact same thing? I may not agree with their methods, but I can agree with their rationale. They wanted the best of the best too. I think if you look at it from that point of you, you'll see that I'm right..."

Cody just sat there thinking, and he did have to admit that Clyde had a point.

"Now, I don't want to put any pressure on you or anything like that. I actually think its a good idea for you two to keep looking at these other schools to find the right one for you both. But I wanted you to see some other points of view so you didn't throw away the potentially right one for you for the wrong reasons."

Cody nodded. "You're absolutely right, Clyde. I needed to hear all of that. Thank you. You've definitely given me a lot to think about now..."

___To be Continued..._


	3. Shaping Up & Shipping Out

_Episode 3_

_"Shaping Up & Shipping Out"_

_I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did._

_Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them._

_Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves._

_And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so..._

_On a Plane Flying Back to Boston_

Cody and Clyde did eventually finish getting the dish and the TV hooked up, and within minutes of that, Clyde and all of Cody's soon to be brothers-in-law huddled up around the TV to begin channel surfing. And for the next couple of hours, none of them moved from their seats unless they had to go to the bathroom. Naturally, all of the women noticed they were all missing and went looking for them. Needless to say, they couldn't help but laugh at the site in front of them. Then, they focused their attention on to Cody, and teasingly thanked him for turning all of the guys into mindless zombies for the rest of the day. Fortunately for him, Cody didn't have to put up with too much of that as it was soon time for he and and Bailey to say their goodbyes to everyone. To make sure they didn't miss their flight back to Boston, they left Kettlecorn about two o'clock that afternoon to begin to head to Tulsa. Fortunately, it wasn't that hot of a day, so the malfunctioning air conditioner on their rental car didn't turn out to be that big of a deal on their drive back. By 3:00 that afternoon, they finally arrived at the airport just outside of Tulsa, Oklahoma, and Cody was happy to get to cross off yet another state on his list of ones he hadn't visited yet.

"Bails, I think I'm getting close to thirty now. I still have a bunch down in the south and then from Idaho east towards Wisconsin to knock out too."

She smiled. "Pretty much the same ones for me too. Its kind of funny that the ones most people have trouble knocking out, Alaska and Hawaii, we've already been too before..."

"I know...too bad the ship couldn't make its way to places like Montana or the Dakotas or we would have them knocked off too. I mean...we've seen were Otto von Bismarck was born in Germany but not to the state capital named after him..."

After turning in the keys to their rental, they checked their bags and made their way through security. Fortunately, Tulsa's airport was not as busy as others that had been through. And their timing couldn't have been better as their flight was being called to board just as they walked up to their gate. The new airline they were flying back on didn't have assigned seats but rather gave you boarding number. When your number was called, you boarded with that group and it was first come, first serve as to seats once you got on the plane. Equally fortunate, Cody and Bailey had been assigned to boarding group #1, and as they had just arrived at the gate, they just strolled on over to the counter and were the first ones in line to board. So, with that, they got their choice of any seats they wanted on the plane, and chose ones in the front row. Not only did it have more leg room than any other row, but there were only to seats in the row. So, they didn't have to worry about a stranger sitting next to them. Once the flight was airborne heading east, the seat belt sign was turned off, and people got up to use the bathroom and roam around the cabin. Naturally, those who had been waiting at the gate longer than they had gave Cody and Bailey dirty looks for getting the best seats on the flight.

But that didn't matter to them as they had other things on their minds.

"You know, Bails...before we left, your Dad talked to me and gave me some things to think about."

She turned to him. "Oh yeah? What did he say to you?"

Cody replayed the conversation he and Clyde had had, and Bailey agreed that her father had made some very valid and interesting points. "Well, if I think about it like that, what he said does make some sense. I can definitely see us scouting out the best schools for our kids. And I know we've both done the same thing for our own educations. It does make it sound a little hypocritical for us to do that to schools but get upset if they do it back to us..."

"I know. And the more I think about I, the more I think he's right. I shouldn't let my anger get in the way of what's really important. I mean...its evident that despite everything, Harvard wants me enough to actually offer to pay me to go there..."

She looked over at him. "So, are you saying we're ready to stop with all of these interviews and that we're Harvard bound now?"

He shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe. What do you think about all of this? I mean, if you want to keep looking and see what these other schools have to offer, we can do that. And if you want to stop our search now, I think I'd be okay with that too."

Bailey paused to think again. "You know, I say we continue looking at least through our next trip back here over Father's Day. By then, we'll have seen Duke, Brown, Columbia, Cornell and Penn too. After seeing all of them, maybe by then, we'll be ready to make a final decision?"

Cody nodded. "Sounds like a plan to me." He smiled. "Now that we have that out of the way and have some down time until we land back in Boston, I think this would be a good time for us to do our homework less we face the wrath of London when we get back..."

She laughed. "Good idea. Well, we have all of our guest lists now, so that's done. We just need to take the spreadsheets your Mom, your Dad, my Mom and the one we made with our friends on it and combine them into one big master list."

"That won't be too difficult. And Chef Paulo is on vacation now, and he won't be back until the week after Zack ships out. But we do have an appointment to meet with him as soon as he returns."

"And London is setting up the appointment with Arturo for us, so nothing for us to decide there until after we meet with him."

"So, I guess that leaves us with making a decision on our wedding party..." Cody paused. "Unfortunately, I can kind of see a problem we might have. If you want all of your sisters in it, I don't know if I can think of enough groomsmen to just match up with them alone..."

Bailey sighed. "I know. And if I ask one or a couple of sisters and not the rest, the others might feel slighted. So, its either none of them or all nine of them..."

"Your call, Sweetie."

"Right now, I'm leaning towards none of them. I have others I want to be bridesmaids too, and if we add them to my nine sisters, there very well could be more people in the bridal party than guests at the wedding." She shook her head. "So, I think none of them then just to make things easier. Now, with that decided, lets analyze everything else. You already know who your best man is going to be."

Cody nodded. "Yeah...Zack. One of the perks of being a twin I guess - a built in best man."

"And that would leave you with Woody, Marcus and Tapeworm as groomsmen."

"Which would leave you the need for a maid of honor and three bridesmaids. Plus, I'm sure we can get your niece and your nephew to be our flower girl and ring bearer."

Bailey nodded this time. "Yeah, those take care of themselves pretty easily. But as for bridesmaids, the obvious candidates are London, Gertie, and Addison. Of course, that leaves one final spot for either Courtney or Maya or..." She sighed again. "I wish our number matched up better..."

"Well, if you want, I can try to think of one more groomsmen...maybe I could ask my Dad or Moseby or Bob?"

"I guess that could work..." She topped to think again, and that's when an idea came to her. Bailey grinned and turned to face him. "Cody Bear...maybe we should be thinking of less instead of more?"

Cody just looked at her in confusion. "Huh?"

Bailey smiled. "Well...since our wedding will be on the beach, what would you think if we only had a best man and maid of honor standing up there with us? You know...keep things simple."

Cody paused to consider that idea too. "Well, I guess that would make things easier. And for me, I already know who would be standing next to me. But can you narrow down your candidates for your maid of honor to just one person?"

"I don't know. I mean, I do have several very good candidates..."

"Again, that would be your call, Bails. Just know I'll support you in whoever you do choose."

"I know. Let me think about it some more."

He smiled. "Tell you what. You take the rest of our flight to think about it, and I'll take care of merging all of our lists into a master one. I can then go through and sort them all alphabetically to make things easier. And Bails, don't feel like your rushed to make this decision. Take all the time you need..."

So, that's what they did. For the rest of the flight back, Cody worked away on his laptop forging their master list , while Bailey used hers to make a list of pros and cons for each potential candidate to be her maid of honor. And as they began their final descent into to Boston, she turned to Cody and smiled.

"I think I've made my choice."

_Boston_

Even though it was getting late by the time they arrived back in Boston, Cody and Bailey were just in time to join Zack and Maya in taking Carey out for a late Mother's Day dinner. But they weren't the only ones who had just gotten back to Boston right before it was time to go out. Maya and Zack had met up with her parents at the Mohegan Sun Casino and Resort over in Connecticut to spend some time with her Mom that afternoon. When it was time for Zack and Maya to head back to Boston, Zack was a little envious when he head that the Bennetts were off to spend some time in the casino before having a late dinner themselves in one of the restaurants there. It was particularly bad when Zack found out that the restaurant was owned by none other than a famous ex Chicago Bull who used to wear the number '23' and who might actually be in the restaurant himself that night. Maya just laughed.

"Zack, we have to head back now if we're going to get there in time..."

He sighed. "I know, but how many times will I get the chance to meet Michael Jordan?"

"I know, but think how much it will mean to your Mom that you passed on the chance to meet him so you could spend Mother's Day with her..."

Zack reluctantly agreed, and Maya practically had to drag him out the building. And since she was driving, she turned on the manual door and window locks in case he changed his mind and tried to escape once in the car. So, both twins had had quite the days by the time they took their mother out to dinner that night. And even though the refrained from bringing up the major topics in their lives that evening, they were all Carey wanted to talk about. She kept going on about how one of her boys was about to head to back to sea for the summer while the other was traveling the country looking at medical schools he might attend the next year. At one point, she even implored of Cody and Bailey to take second looks at all of the local medical schools. They just winked at each other before telling Carey they were indeed considering all of the medical schools in the Boston area. Once dinner was over, everyone decided to call it a day as all of them had to go to work the next day. Of course, Zack getting a text message picture of His Airness standing next to Maya's parents almost caused him to cry.

Of course, that following week was to be Zack's last week of working at London Inns before leaving for the boat, Maya's last full week of work before her summer school classes started and Cody and Bailey's first week of work that summer back at the Tipton Clinic. And while their weeks all went fine, everyone was ready for a day off by the time they were over. But a break was not to be in the cards for any of them. Cody and Bailey had to head down to Providence on Saturday morning for an interview at Brown. And Zack, and Maya had some errands they had to run that day. For Zack, that meant going shopping for clothes and other necessities he would need for his time onthe ship, and for Maya, she had to go buy her Physics book and supplies for summer school the following Monday. As they walked out of the bookstore, she sighed.

"I think I liked shopping for your stuff a whole lot better. My purchases are full of formulas and problems that I could care less about right now."

Zack just smiled. "Yeah, well, your summer school experience won't potentially cause you to get nauseous from sea sickness..."

Maya laughed. "I don't know about all of that! Its been a while since I've studied physics. I can easily see myself getting nauseous trying to figure this stuff out..."

"Yeah, maybe that's why I never took it before. I could have taken it my junior year on the boat, but by then, Bailey had already become Cody's favorite lab partner. If I couldn't have him do most of the work for me, I passed..." He shrugged. "Anyways, how do you want to spend our last week together before I'm gone for six weeks? You want to go hit a Sox game or head to Six Flags or head to the water park or...?"

She shrugged too. "Doesn't really matter to me, but we'll have to do whatever it is tomorrow though. Starting Monday, I'm in class every morning and then work every afternoon. And then, next Satuday, you ship out..."

"Well, I guess we're doing something tomorrow then..." He paused and smiled. "How about this? Whatever we do tomorrow, we'll do the same thing again when I return from the ship at the end of the summer. It'll be kind of symbolic that our summer apart is finally over and that I'm back for good."

Maya smiled back at him. "I like the sound of that." She paused and couldn't help but to laugh. "Is it bad that this is the first time that I can ever remember that I wish the summer would hurry up and be over and for school to start back again as soon as it can?"

Zack laughed too. "Nah. Its going to be a rough summer on the both of us. While we might not have to like it, we both know we're doing what we need to do. I have to go on the boat to get credit for the class I need to graduate. And you're taking those two physics classes so you can graduate on schedule..." He grinned. "But if you didn't, I'd do whatever it took to convince London to send you to the boat with me..."

"And I'd do whatever it took to convince her to sent me to the boat with you. But, I guess this is another sign we're growing up and maturing, huh? Doing the right thing although its hard and not what we really want?"

"Yeah, I guess so." Zack grinned. "But, don't worry. We'll be sure to do something later on so that it doesn't seem like we've totally lost our coolness. At some point, we'll pull another prank and remind people of what were capable of..."

Maya laughed. "Works for me."

"Come on. Lets get out of here. We have to go figure out what we're going to do tomorrow."

And on Sunday, they decided to head to Six Flags and spend the day there. They asked Cody and Bailey to join them which they agreed to do as they thought it sounded like fun. Unfortunately, right before it was time to leave that morning, London showed up at their suite and told them they weren't going anywhere as they had more important things to do. Sighing, Cody and Bailey told Zack and Maya to go on without them, so they just waved goodbye and left. That left Cody and Bailey alone in the suite with London, and she just looked back and forth at them and shook her head.

"I can't believe this! You two of all people going to goof off when we have work to do!"

Bailey could only sigh. "But we've done all the homework you asked us to do..."

"Yeah? Lets see your guest lists then..."

Bailey smirked at her friend. "Would you rather have hard copies of our master list or would you prefer us to e-mail it to you?"

"Both." London paused and smiled. "But that's more like the effort I want to see..."

Cody rolled his eyes. "And we have an appointment set with Chef Paulo as soon as he gets back from his vacation."

London nodded. "Good, good...What else?"

"And we have our wedding party set..." He looked over and Bailey and winked at her. "Or at least we did until a few minutes ago..."

"Oh yeah? Well, let's hear it. Arturo needs to know how many bridesmaids dresses he needs to design too."

"Well, we decided that we're only going to have a best man and a maid of honor. Naturally, Zack will be Cody's best man."

"Just one of each, huh?" London shrugged. "Works for me, and Zack being best man was a no brainer. Now, who is the maid of honor going to be? We'll need to schedule a time for Arturo to take her measurements too. Do you think she would be available to come to our meeting with him next week?"

Bailey couldn't help but smile. "I don't know - why don't you tell us if you'll be available to make it?

"Huh?"

She just shook her head and kept smiling. "London, that was me asking you to be my maid of honor. I'd be honored if you would..."

London looked at Bailey in surprise. "You want me?"

Bailey just kept smiling. "Yes, you. I mean...without you, who knows where Cody and I would be right now. You were the one who blackmailed your father so that we wouldn't be separated after the tornado. You were the one who tipped us off with the information about your father so we could...persuade him to use his influence to get Cody accepted to Yale. Face it, London - even though you've always said you hate helping people, you've always been there for us. And London, outside of Cody, you're the best friend that I've got..."

London found herself getting very emotional and had tears beginning to well in her eyes. She was so touched by Bailey's gesture that her voice was only barely above a whisper. "Well, if that's what you want, it would be me that would be honored to be your maid of honor, Bailey."

Cody grinned. "Just a warning, I hope you know that part of the job responsibilities will be keeping Zack in line during the ceremony..."

London laughed. "Consider it done!" She paused and dabbed a tissue at her eyes. "Wow...I never expected this."

Bailey grinned too. "Well, the job is yours. So, just remember, any crazy time lines and deadlines or anything else require of us, you'll have to deal with them yourself..."

She smiled too. "Understood. Well, we really have some work to do then, don't we? If I'm going to be part of this thing, we have to make sure its going to be spectacular! We need to start thinking of ideas to share with the wedding planner when she gets here in a few weeks!"

Cody spoke up again. "Actually, Zack inadvertently had an idea we both really like. What do you think of a luau instead of a traditional rehearsal dinner?"

London paused as she considered that. "You know, I like it too. It would be very in keeping with the whole tropical motif of the wedding. That was a really good idea. I guess Zack is getting a lot better at those than he used to be..."

Bailey continued. "And we figured the reception would be inside. We've tried dancing on sand before, and it wasn't the easiest thing in the world to do. I'd rather not fall on my butt during our first dance as husband and wife."

Cody nodded. "Plus, it would be much easier to keep the food fresh inside with the added bonus of not having to worry about insects trying to get into it. And, it will be the middle of July in Hawaii. I think air conditioning would be nice..." He laughed. "...especially if there are going to be ice sculptures!"

London laughed too. "Good, good. Lets keep these ideas coming!"

_Boston University Fitness & Recreation Center_

On Tuesday of that next week, Maya found herself walking out the classroom as her physics lab of the summer had finally come to an end. While her summer school class wasn't high on her current list of favorite things, she had found out she had several things going for her. For one, she was relieved to find out that she wouldn't be taking the calculus based physics that was exponentially more difficult than the algebra based variety. For another, one of the other girls who taught swim lessons with at the fit&rec center was not only in her actual class but in her lab as well. So, she had a friendly face whom she could sit next next to in class as well as be her partner for the lab. But she was done with class for the day, she had other things on her mind and immediately caught the bus down the street to the fit&rec center. That Tuesday was one day she didn't want to be late to work as it was going to be the first time she would actually have an aquatic therapy client. So, once she got to work, she immediately changed into her aquatard and headed to the aquatic therapy area to wait for her first guinea pig to show up. Fortunately, there was a desk and chair off along the wall where she could sit down. And while she waited, she began reviewing her new client's file so she could familiarize herself with his injury and treatment. With that knowledge, she could design the exercises for his first session. And just as she was finishing up doing that, a guy about her age with a knee brace and crutches hobbled into the area. Maya just looked up him, smiled and pointed.

"The men's locker room is right over there. Go change into your trunks, and we'll get you started..."

The guy nodded before he paused and looked at her. "Wait a minute...Aren't you in my physics class?"

"I could be. I'm in 105 every morning from 9:00-10:30..."

He smiled and laughed. "I thought you looked familiar. I'm in there too. I'm Ryan McDonald, a pleasure to meet you..."

"I'm Maya, and I'll be assisting you through the aquatic therapy part of your rehab." She grabbed her chart and glanced at it again. "It says here that you tore your ACL and had surgery to repair it a couple of months ago. Well, lets see what we can do to strengthen it and get it back to normal."

Ryan just looked at her funny. "You didn't know what my injury was beforehand? Don't you know who I am?"

Maya shook her head. "No. Should I?"

He laughed. "Well, I guess I thought everyone around campus did. I went down in the first round of the NCAA hockey tournament this year. If I hadn't, we might have won the championship."

Maya shrugged. "Oh...Sorry, I don't really keep up with hockey all that much except for the Rangers. I'm more of a football, baseball and basketball kind of gal..."

He gave her another look. "A girl who likes sports? I might be in good hands then..." He grinned. "This might not be so bad afterall then..."

She couldn't help but laugh. "Well, we'll see if you still feel the same way after I put you through your first round of aquatic therapy. Once its over, you might think I'm the devil incarnate..."

Ryan laughed too. "Lets see what you've got!"

And those would be famous last words. By the time his first session of aquatic therapy was over, the big athlete on campus was completely exhausted and sore from head to toe. He didn't even have the energy to pull himself up from the side of the pool.

Maya just laughed again. "So, how bad do you hate me right now?"

He just looked up at her and tried to catch his breath. "You weren't kidding! That was rough! I've never had a hockey practice that tough before!"

"Well, its supposed to be difficult, but, if you keep up with it, your knee will get strengthened back to normal and you'll be back out on the ice before you know it. But you have to take it seriously. If you don't, I think you can kiss your future hockey career goodbye..."

Ryan just shook his head. "Sounds like you really know your sports injuries then."

She shrugged. "I grew up around them all my life. My Dad is an agent, so I've always met athletes who have gotten injured in one way or another. I've even met Dr. James Andrews a few time. And I've seen some of the biggest, toughest and strongest guys in the world either not be able to hack rehab or didn't put in the work necessary. So, they basically threw their careers away for nothing!"

"Well, don't think I'm giving up. I know I can do this, so give me your best shot!"

Maya grinned. "That's the right attitude to have!" She checked her chart again. "Looks like your scheduled to come in on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons for the next couple of months to keep doing this. So, I guess I'll see you on Thursday then at the same time."

"What if I want to do it more often so I can get back on the ice even sooner?"

"Well, I guess I could come in on some Saturday mornings, but I would ease into your rehab if I were you. The one thing they keep stressing to us is never do too much or push too hard too soon. That could be just as dangerous as not taking things seriously. You could do irreparable harm and make everything a moot point."

"Fair enough, but would this Saturday be too soon to start?"

Maya laughed. "Definitely. Besides, I already have big plans that day that I won't miss for anything. So, lets just stick with Tuesdays and Thursdays for the time being. Now, pick yourself up, go get changed, and I'll see you on Thursday."

Ryan finally pulled himself up and headed into the locker room while Maya finished writing up her notes from the first session into his file. Once she was done, she headed off to change herself. After she had, she headed back out into the lobby of the rehab so she could drop his file back off to the girl working the front desk. But when she got there, she saw Zack there waiting and grinning at her.

She smiled. "Well, well. I think I could definitely get used to you being here waiting on me..."

He laughed. "Well, I figured I could take you out to dinner again tonight."

"Sounds good to me. I'm was just about to get out of here anyways."

And as they walked out hand in hand, Maya turned to Zack. "You'll never guess who my first patient was today..."

"Oh yeah? Who was it? Somebody I know?"

"I don't think you know him personally, but it was some guy on the BU hockey team who tore his ACL."

Zack stopped them in med step and turned to look at her. "Wait a minute! Is it that McDonald guy?"

Maya nodded. "Yeah, I believe that's his last name. Do you know who he is?"

He laughed. "Don't you remember that Youtube clip I showed you a couple of months ago? He's the one who had a break away goal on an empty net and ended up tripping over his own stick and hurting himself! I don't care how good he is, that's embarrassing! An even if he does end up becoming a future pro, he'll never live that down..."

Her eyes went wide and she began laughing too. "I do remember that now! That was hilarious!"

Zack paused. "But as funny as that was, you should also be careful around that guy..."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, because I've overheard girls in some of my classes talking about him. His reputation is not necessarily the best, and there are a lot a rumors floating around about him. Some of them are pretty bad..."

_The S.S. Tipton II_

Saturday finally arrived, and it was the day everyone had been dreading ever since they found out Zack was going to spend the summer on the boat. That day was actually the day the crew was scheduled to get settled in on the boat and have orientation before the guests officially began arriving on Sunday. And since Zack was considered an official part of the crew now, he had to be there bright and early that morning. Naturally, he didn't show up alone as Maya, Carey, Cody and Bailey all were there to help him get settled in. And his new cabin wasn't quite what he was expecting. Zack could only look around it and shake his head.

"This place is tiny!"

Cody laughed. "Well, it is smaller than our student cabins were, but then again, those were designed to house two people. Look on the bright side though, you do still have your own bathroom. And it is bigger than the one you, me and Mom had to share that one time..."

"True...and at least there doesn't appear to be any rats in this one..." He paused and looked around. "Speaking of Mom, where is she?"

Maya grinned. "Oh, she went to have a word with Esteban to make sure he keeps an eye on you."

Zack sighed. "Great. I'm 20 years old, and my mother is still asking other people to take care of me..."

Cody shrugged. "To be fair, she did the same thing when we were 14. Then, it was Moseby she asked to keep an eye on the both of us..." He paused. "...and me she asked to keep an eye on you..."

Zack just shook his head. "Why won't people understand that I'm old enough to take care of myself now? I am a man now, and I don't need a babysitter!"

"Well, too bad! Because you got one! Moseby asked me to keep an eye on you too!"

Everyone turned around when they heard that familiar voice and saw a very large man standing in the doorway smiling at them.

"Kirby!"

He laughed. "In the flesh! So good to see all you guys again!" He turned to Cody and Bailey. "And I got the Save the Date in the mail from you two, and I want you to know I wouldn't miss your wedding for the world!"

Zack shook his head as in disbelief. "What are you doing here, Kirby? I thought you were a big actor now. We've all seen the beer commercials you've been in..."

Kirby shrugged. "They went with a different marketing campaign and didn't need me anymore. I guess I joined the ranks of has beens like Spuds MacKenzie and the Wassup Guys. So, when I got the call from London asking me if I was interested in being the chief of security here on the new shop, I jumped at it."

Maya smiled. "Well, it will be nice knowing I'll have someone else around here to keep Zack out of trouble for me."

He laughed. "I'll do my best, Maya, but technically, while he's here on the boat, he'll be my boss..."

Zack was confused. "Wait a minute! I will?"

Kirby laughed. "Yeah, you will. Now, if you want the other employees around here to respect your authority, you need to learn those kinds of things..."

Zack sighed. "Guess I need this orientation after all..."

Kirby smiled. "Well, I'll see you later, Zack. I need to go finish unpacking myself." He looked around the cabin and whistled. "I sure wish I had a cabin this nice..." He shrugged again. "Anyways, it was good to see everyone again, and I'll catch you all later..."

And with that, he was gone, and Bailey turned to Cody.

"We should head on up to the main deck too and give these two some time alone."

Cody nodded. "Good idea." He turned to Zack and Maya. "We'll see you both up by the gang plank when its time for us to leave. So...Don't fall overboard, Bro." He turned back to Bailey and smiled. "Why don't we head up to the new skydeck and see if we can get a smoothee."

Bailey's eyes lit up. "Definitely! Lets go!" And with that, they made their exit too.

Maya turned to face Zack. "I guess this is it then, huh? The moment I've been dreading ever since I heard you were going to have to do this..."

Zack smiled at her. "I know, but I'll be back for the week of the 4th of July. Just Remember that. Its only six weeks away, and I'll be flying home on the Tuesday night before the 4th..."

"I know. My final is that morning, but I'll be done with classes the rest of the week you'll be home. And I'll have to work that day too, but nothing will stop me from being at the airport to pick you up. I've already asked for and gotten the rest of that week off to spend every moment with you that I can..."

"I'm really going to miss you, Maya."

Tears were forming in her eyes. "Not more than I'll miss you. You better call me at least once a day!"

"I will." He grinned. "I'll just have to make sure I get the time differences right so I don't call you in the middle of class or while you're at work."

She wiped her eyes. "I wouldn't care if you did! You can call me at three o'clock in the morning, and I'll answer..." She smiled. "It might take me a few minutes to fully wake up and figure out who you are, but I will answer..."

Zack leaned in and kissed her. "I love you. Don't ever forget that."

"I know. I love you too."

At that moment, they heard the ships horn begin to blow, and he sighed. "That's the signal. Everyone not a crew members has fifteen minutes to get off the boat."

Maya nodded. "We better get up to the gang plank then..."

"Lets go." He paused. "Before we do though, I need another one of these..." He leaned in and kissed her long and passionately. "Okay, that should last me for the next six weeks."

She smiled. "Just remember...there will be a lot more of those waiting on you when you get back..."

___To be Continued..._

**AN: Sorry for the delay in posting this, but I was temporarily banned from posting for three days. Don't ask, but I'm sure you can guess which group of writers on this site was probably behind it. Anyways, for anyone who happened to watch the Hatfields & McCoys on the History Channel earlier this week, don't believe what they showed is what actually happened. As Costner was a producer and playing a Hatfield, it was slanted in that direction. They weren't the honorable people the series made them out to be, and actually terrorized people on both sides of the boarder with their antics. And I'm not just saying that as someone who may or may not have McCoy relatives in his family tree ;)**___  
_


	4. The Summer is Starting to Heat Up

_Episode 4_

_"The Summer is Starting to Heat Up"_

_I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did._

_Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them._

_Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves._

_And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so..._

_S.S. Tipton II_

His first week on board the boat turned out to be a very exhausting one for Zack. He quickly discovered that from eight o'clock every morning until seven o'clock every night that he was going to be constantly busy and on the move. Whenever it seemed like he had put out one fire or satisfied the request of a passenger, there was already a line of other ones to take its place. And the few moments he did get each day to just stop and catch his breath, he found himself shaking his head and wistfully remembering all the free time he used to have on the original boat while he was in school. Zack was quickly coming to the realization that his time on the new boat wasn't going to be anything like the times he had on the old one. To make matters worse, when he finally did finish working everyday, he didn't have any of his old friends there to hang out, have fun with or even just have dinner with. Sure, he had Kirby, Esteban and Francesca there to try to take their places, but it just wasn't the same. By the end of his first week on the boat, Zack couldn't help but to realize that this new adventure he thought was going to be so cool was just going to be a job and nothing more.

And while he missed the old times on the boat, he missed seeing Maya even more. Sure, he tried calling her everyday, but while they were out on the open ocean, cell reception would fail every so often with so many passengers trying to use its cell tower. So, for the first week, some of their phone calls would be very brief ones before they got cut off. Add that to the increasing time differences between which made determining when to call a real task. So, Zack should have been excited when they finally arrived in Spain on that Friday evening as he would finally be able to get a better signal. But after one of the longest weeks of his life, he was flat out exhausted. With the guests able to finally get off the boat, he was grateful that they wouldn't need him as much, and he figured he would have more down time to relax. But that was not to be. While he didn't have actual work duties to do, he did remember the lists of places Cody had made for him that he need to go check out for his summer school assignment. So, on his own, he headed out into Barcelona so he could began checking them off of his list. And at one such restaurant, they almost threw him out as soon as he walked in. Turns out it was one of the places Cody had been kicked out of, and Zack had to convince them that he wasn't his brother. But that wasn't the worst part of it - it was kind of depressing seeing all of these cool places and having to do it all by himself. When he finally returned to his cabin late that evening/early that morning, he checked his watch again. And after doing the math to find out what time it was back in Boston, he decided to try calling Maya again. After two rings, she picked up.

_"Zack!"_

He could help but smile when he heard her voice. "Hey, Babe. I just wanted to talk to you and hear your voice again. Is this a good time to talk?"

_"Yeah, its actually perfect. I just got back to the Tipton a few minutes ago after getting off work. And, Babe, I so happy to hear your voice too. Its been lonely around here without you. I mean, Cody and Bailey did ask me to go see a movie with them last night, but the one they chose was so boring. It wasn't the same as going to one with you..."_

He laughed. "It better not be! I remember what you and I do at movies we both find boring!"

_Maya laughed too. "So do I, but without you there to distract me, I had to actually focus on the movie's plot, and it was horrible! I don't understand how they can enjoy movies with subtitles..."_

"Sorry to hear that, Maya...but if it makes you feel any better, I haven't had time to watch a movie even if I wanted to..."

_"I take it things are still pretty rough, huh?" She paused. "Is it just me, or I can I actually hear you without any static this time?"_

Zack laughed. "Yeah, you can. We're docked in Barcelona right now, so I have the benefit of the cell towers here along the docks. Actually, with us out of the Atlantic now, I should have much better reception until its time for me to come back to Boston."

_"Good. I had almost forgotten how terrible reception was in the middle of the ocean. And there was no way I was going to ask you to pay almost ten bucks a minute to use a satellite phone."_

_"_It would have been worth it just to hear your voice..."

_"Same here. It was kind of hard seeing Cody and Bailey spending 24/7 together and me not knowing how long I'd get to talk to you each day..."_

"Well, it will be much better now. Speaking of those two though, how has it been living with them? Is everything going alright?"

_"Actually, its been going pretty great. Every night, they can condense into fifteen minutes what my professor spends an hour and a half trying to teach us. And they actually make it to where this stuff all makes sense to me. So, I've been killing my homework, and I think I did really well on my first test today."_

He smiled. "Good. I'm happy to hear that. And I'm glad those two aren't being pains in the butts..."

_She laughed again. "They're fine, but I'm not going to complain about having the suite to myself this weekend. I'm thinking of fixing myself a nice bubble bath and soaking it for a long time tonight..."_

Zack's smile changed to a frown. "The suite to yourself? They've left you alone for the weekend? Where did Broseph and Brosephina go?"

_"Yeah. They were gone by the time I got home today so they could head down to Philadelphia. They both have interviews at Penn's medical school in the morning. And London hooked them up with a room at the Philadelphia Tipton, so they are going to spend the whole weekend down there..."_

"I guess they really are heading all over for their interviews..."

_"Oh, I'm pretty sure this will be the norm for the rest of the summer. Next weekend, they are heading over to Ithaca, New York to interview and see Cornell, and the weekend after, they are heading down to New York City. They're going to interview at Columbia and hang out with Marcus and Melanie."_

He paused. "You sure you're going to be okay being left all by yourself like that?"

_Maya laughed. "Yeah, I'll be fine. I'm actually going to be working some Saturdays at the rehab center. So, it'll get me even more experience plus some extra change in my pocket."_

"Well, that's good I guess..."

_"How about you? Other than what you've already told me, how are things going on the ship?"_

"Well, fortunately, in the little free time I've had, I've had Kirby to hang out with. And I admit...a few times, he and I have attacked a buffet together."

_Maya laughed again. "I should have seen that coming. So, any passengers you've felt like throwing overboard yet?"_

Zack laughed too. "Actually, there has been one. You remember that one old lady back on the old boat who was always hitting me with her purse? Well, she's back on this one too and has resumed hitting me again for no reason. And she's always giving me a dirty look..."

_"Doesn't she have a real home to be at?"_

"I have no idea. I'm starting to think she's lived on a ship as long as I have. And her purse is even bigger now! It starting to really hurt!"

_"Awww...my poor baby."_

He rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah. Enough of my job, how are things going with yours?"

_"Pretty well actually. My new boss is really happy with my work in the rehab area. And, I still love teaching the swim classes. I've got a whole new group of kids I'm helping out. One of them is a natural and could be the next Michael Phelps."_

"So, I'll see him on Subway commercials here in a few years?"

_Maya laughed again. "Maybe...I mean, they do need someone new after what happened to Jared..."_

Zack cringed. "Yeah, that wasn't pretty...When he fell off the wagon, he really fell of the wagon..."

_She cringed too. "Tell me about it..."_

He sighed. "Out of everything, I miss this the most. You know, just talking to you like this about anything and everything."

_"Me too, Zack. But the good news is your now a week closer to coming back to Boston. We just have to think of it like that..."_

"I guess so. While I'm here, is there anything you'd like from Barcelona? I'm supposed to go out with a tour group in the morning so I can write about it for my journal..."

_"Nothing that I can think of. I mean, I'd love an authentic churro like we got there our senior years, but it would probably be stale by the time you brought it back to me..."_

Zack shook his head and laughed. "Wow, I must be more exhausted than I thought! I completely forgot that I'm actually in the land of churros!" He checked his watch. "I wonder if any places that sell them are still open?"

_"Well, if there are, go easy on them. I don't want you falling back into some old bad habits. And Zack? If you do find a place open, don't rub it in about how good it was when you call me tomorrow..."_

He grinned. "I won't...Sure there isn't anything else around here you'd like?"

_"I'm sure. The only thing I want you to bring home to me is you."_

Zack smiled again. "Be patient, Babe...I'll be back before you know it."

_London's Penthouse_

On Wednesday evening of the following week, Cody and Bailey had another scheduled meeting in London's penthouse to go over further details of their wedding. But this would be a special meeting as it was also when they would finally meet with Arturo and see his ideas for what he saw Bailey, Cody and the rest of the wedding party wearing on their big day. And figuring it wouldn't hurt to have a couple of extra pairs of eyes and opinions there, Cody and Bailey asked Carey and Maya to join them that evening. And to begin with, they discussed the other details they had decided on including the reception menu that they had planned out with Chef Paulo a couple of days earlier. As they did, London was checking things off on her master list, and there were only a very few things left to do. She was about to begin discussing colors schemes and flowers arrangements when everyone heard a knock at the penthouse door. When London opened it, she saw and greeted Arturo with the air kiss thing before he walked inside. And when he saw Bailey sitting on the couch, the biggest smile formed on his face.

"There she is again! The inspiration for my farm line that got me out of my slump several years ago. Well, don't you worry, Bailey, I'm here to pay off a little of the debt I owe you! I have some truly fabulous ideas for a beach wedding dress!"

Bailey smiled back at him. "Thank you, Arturo, and its nice to see you again too..." She gestured over to Cody. "And this is my fiance, Cody. He was in Antarctica when you came aboard the boat..."

Cody was about to say something himself when Arturo cut him off. He just glared at Cody. "So you're the groom, huh? Stand up!"

Cody was taken aback by this demand and looked over at Bailey who just nodded for him to do so. Shrugging, he stood up. And that's when Arturo held out his hands so he could frame Cody in his vision.

"Hmmm...Well, I think I can work with him..."

Cody rolled his eyes. "Gee...thanks."

"Oh settled down, Sweetcheeks...I just meant that the ideas I had in mind will work for your body frame." He turned to London. "You're right - a normal tuxedo would just simply not work. I'm think something in..." He paused to think before his eyes lit up. "A sand colored tan!"

London clapped. "Oooo...I like it!"

"A more casual type suit made out of linen...no...silk...no..." He grinned. "...tropical wool! Now that would be absolutely perfect!"

Cody wasn't quite sure what was going on here, so he turned to Bailey again with a questioning look in his eyes. But she just smiled up at him. "Actually, Sweetie, I actually like the sound of that too. But you'll be the one who actually has to wear it, so what do you think?"

He just shrugged again. "Well, if you like it, Bails, then its fine with me..."

But Arturo wasn't quite done with his vision just yet. "And a long sleeved white button up shirt underneath. Definitely with the collar open though. A tie would be way too formal for a beach wedding..." He paused again before smiling. "I've got it! Since we'll be in Hawaii, instead of ties, the guys will all be wearing flower leis!"

Bailey's eyes lit up as she nodded vigorously. "Oh...I love the sound of that too!" She turned to Cody and smiled. "Cody, I can picture you wearing that in my mind, and I just know you'll look so handsome..."

Arturo continued. "Naturally, a white one for the groom here. The other guys will be wearing shirts of a different color and their leis will be of a mixture of flowers that are white and of that same color. And the bridesmaid dress should match them as well. And I'm make sure the dresses for the mothers have some of that color in them too." He looked over at Bailey again. "Do you have a secondary color in mind?"

Bailey paused to think about that. "Well, if the suits are going to match the beach, maybe we pick a bluish green to match the color of the ocean there?"

Arturo's eyes went wide again. "I love it! That sounds absolutely perfect!" He chuckled. "I always knew you had great taste, Bailey!"

London shook her head and sighed. "That was just luck, Arturo. Its like I told you before, she's really not that good of a dresser. I mean...look at what she's wearing right now!"

Bailey sighed. "London, these are scrubs. Neither Cody nor I have had a chance to change clothes since we got home from work..."

Arturo ignored them though. "And the groom's shirts can have a matching Hawaiian pattern in that same color! You know, to give his ensemble a little color to it. This is going to be so fabulous! Come on people, give me more ideas here!"

And as everyone else began shouting out ideas and suggestions, Cody was just standing there shaking his head wondering if it had actually been necessary for him to be there after all. But the next thing Arturo said reminded him why he was there.

He pulled out his measuring tape. "Okay...Groom...let's get your measurements so I can get to work on this."

So, Cody stood there in front of everyone as they watched a strange man run a measuring tape all over his body. To say he was a little uncomfortable when he was getting his inseam measured would be an understatement. But he knew he just had to grin and bear it as he was doing all of this to give Bailey the wedding of her dreams. And when Arturo was finally done, he just slapped Cody on the butt.

"Okay, you can leave now, Honey. I'm through with you..." He laughed. "Besides, you aren't supposed to know anything about the wedding dress until you see your bride here wearing it as she walks down the aisle..."

Cody just stood there with his eyes and mouth agape in shock at what Arturo had just done, and almost everyone else in the room laughed at his immediate reaction to. Fortunately, Bailey was still thinking about the guys' suits and had a question that diverted the attention away from him.

"What about shoes though, Arturo?"

He shook his head and laughed again. "Oh, silly me! Where was my head? I can't believe I almost forgot about that as I have another idea I think would be perfect! I was thinking for the ceremony, everyone would be...wait for it... barefoot! That way you can feel the sand beneath your toes!"

Bailey couldn't help but laugh herself. "You know, I do like the sound of that!"

Cody looked over at her in surprise. "You do? If everyone is barefoot, wouldn't that increase the risk of someone stepping on a sharp, jagged shell and cutting themselves?"

She paused. "Oh...I hadn't thought of that."

London rolled her eyes. "Don't worry. I'll make sure the staff of the hotel combs the sand and gets rid of anything like that the morning of your wedding..."

Bailey shrugged and turned back to Cody. "Well, if that's possible, I think I'd like for us to go with Arturo's suggestion. Cody Bear, what do you think?"

He smiled at her. "If that's what my Boo Boo wants, that's what she's going to get..."

Arturo grinned again. "Excellent! Of course, everyone will get commemorative flip flops to wear for the reception. Can't have bare feet there!"

London's eyes went wide. "Oooo...I like the sound of that! We'll ask everyone to include their shoe size on their RSVPs!"

Cody just sighed and shook his head again. "Okay, well, if I'm done here, I'm going back downstairs. I think I need another shower..."

Of course, Arturo and London were ignoring him as they were deep in conversation about something else. But Bailey got up and walked him out to the elevator. And when they got there, she leaned in, kissed him goodbye and then whispered in his ear. "I know this wasn't your idea of fun and that you aren't particularly enthused about some of Arturo's ideas. But I want you to know how much it meant to me that you are willing to go along with all of this."

He just looked at her and smiled. "You know I'd do anything for you. And I told you I'd give you the wedding of your dreams, so I'm going to do everything I can to make that happen."

She smiled back at him. "I know, and I love you all the more for it. And if you can hold off on that shower for a little while longer, I'll be down there for us to share it..."

Cody quickly agreed with her suggestion before kissing her again when the elevator doors opened. Once he was gone, Bailey walked back into the penthouse where Arturo was smiling at her. "Good. With the groom gone now, I can show you my piece de resistance. I can show you the sketches I've made for your wedding dress, Bailey. Now, I resisted the urge to make them too outlandish as I know that's not your style. But I think I have a few ideas you're just going to love!"

He sat down next to her on the couch and showed her his sketch book. The first couple of ones Bailey liked but she didn't love. But when she got to the last one, her eyes lit up.

"This one! This is the one I want for my wedding dress!"

Carey, Maya and London all looked at it over her shoulder and nodded their agreement. London couldn't help but laugh. "I have to admit you made an excellent choice, Bailey. I really like it. Maybe your taste isn't that bad after all..."

"I don't think it ever was. I mean, I know have the perfect dress for me to go along with the perfect groom for me..." Bailey was almost beaming. "I just wish these next thirteen months would hurry up and fly by..."

_Boston University Fitness & Recreation Center_

A couple of weeks later, Maya once again got out of her physics lab and headed straight over to the fit&rec center to get ready for her afternoon aquatic therapy session. After she had changed into her aquatard, she headed over to the area's desk so she could review her her notes from the previous four weeks of Ryan's therapy. Once she had done that, she was able to judge his progress and determine how much if any to ramp up the intensity of the sessions that week. As just as she was finishing up her evaluation, Ryan came out in to the pool area in his swim trunks and grinned at her.

"You ready to get the show on the road?"

She looked over at him and nodded. "Yeah, I think I'm ready. Why don't you go ahead and hop in the pool?"

Like usual, the opening task was walking on the underwater treadmill to allow his leg muscles to get warmed up and stretched out. As he was doing that, Ryan looked up at her.

"So, how do you think you did on our second test this past Friday?"

"Pretty well I think. I actually think I knew how to do everything that we were asked to do. But, I guess I won't know for sure until we get them back this Friday."

He laughed. "Well, I really need to have done better this time. I got a C- on the first one. That thing was brutal!"

Maya couldn't help but to smile. "The first one wasn't that bad. I mean, it couldn't have been if I got an A on it."

Ryan just looked up at her again. "You got an A on it? Maybe you should be tutoring me as well as rehabbing me..."

She shook her head and laughed herself. "I don't think so. Trust me, I'm not qualified to tutor anyone in physics. I just got lucky that my two roommates for this summer are pre-med students, and they've already taken the Calculus based physics classes and aced them. If I'm doing well in that class its because they've been explaining things to me in ways I can actually understand them."

"Maybe they'd tutor me then too? You know...as a little show of school spirit."

Maya shook her head again. "I doubt it as they actually go to school at Yale. They have no allegiance to BU whatsoever, so I don't think trying to play up on their school spirit would work. Besides, I'm grateful that they are spending what little free time they do have helping me. As it is, they've already got enough on their plates with working, going on medical school interviews all over the country and planning their wedding next summer. So, I'm not about to take their kindness for granted and ask them to tutor a total stranger too."

"Awww...where is your school spirit at then?"

She just gave him a look. "I'm helping you rehab and get your knee back in shape, aren't I? Aren't I showing enough school spirit by helping a member of my school's hockey team be ready for when the season starts?"

He just paused. "Well, yeah...I guess technically you are..."

Maya laughed again. "Alright. Enough chit chat. I think you're loosened up now, so lets get you doing some new exercises."

A couple of hours later, Maya was writing down her notes about the current session in Ryan's file, and comparing them to his previous results. And as she was doing that, he came out of the locker room hobbling on his crutches again.

"Well, how am I doing?"

She looked up. "Well, I can't authorize it myself, but I'd say in a couple of weeks, the physical therapist might be ready to rid you of your crutches. In my opinion, I think you're close to getting to the point where you won't need them anymore."

He smiled. "So, you're saying I might get rid of them just in time for our final and the 4th of July weekend?"

"Theoretically assuming you continue improving at the same rate you have been." She smiled. "So, if you're lucky enough to get rid of your crutches, don't do something stupid over the holiday weekend to cause a setback and put you right back on them again..."

"Don't worry, I won't. If I did, my coaches and teammates would kick my butt. But me getting rid of the crutches would be yet another reason to celebrate that weekend. You know, that and finally being done with physics on top of the 4th of July..." He paused and smiled. "You know...after our final, we should go out afterwards and celebrate..."

She shook her head. "I don't think so. First of all, after our final that day, we'll still have another rehab session here." She was about to say why else it wouldn't happen when he interrupted her.

"Of course, I should have remembered that. Okay, we'll go out and celebrate after our session that day. How does that sound?"

Maya sighed. "Again, I don't think so. You see..."

He smiled as he cut her off again. "Awww, Come on! It'll be fun! I mean, if you're there with me, you can make sure yourself that I don't do anything stupid."

She just shook her head and sighed again. "Once again, I don't think so. I can't..."

Ryan cut her off once again. "Let me guess. You can't because there are rules about going out with your patients, right? Well, I can understand that. I wouldn't want you to lose your job. So, how about we hold off in doing this until I'm no longer your patient? They can't get mad at you then because there aren't any rules about socializing with non patients." He smiled at her. "Tell you what, they day after I'm officially done with rehab, we'll go out and celebrate and maybe even call it a date..."

She shook her head once more. "I really wish you would have let me finish. Yes, there are rules about fraternization with clients, but even if there weren't, I wouldn't do it. You see, I have a boyfriend who I love very much. I wouldn't like it if he went out a date with someone else, so I seriously doubt my boyfriend would like it if I did the same thing..."

His smile faded away, and he had another look on his face Maya couldn't quite decipher. "You never told me you had a boyfriend..."

"Because the fact that I do isn't relevant to my work in helping you rehab your knee. Look Ryan, my goal is to be a professional physical therapist some day. And to keep a professional appearance, I've refrained from mentioning my personal life completely. My goal is to keep my professional and private lives completely separate. I hope you can understand and respect that."

He sighed. "And here I thought we were becoming friends..."

Maya just sighed again "Look, if you want to consider us friends in a way similar to work colleagues, that's fine. But, that is all there ever could or will be. Understood?"

Ryan just looked at her for a few minutes before he smiled. "Of course. I can definitely respect and understand your wishes..." He paused and laughed. "...but, if you and your boyfriend should ever..."

There was fire in Maya's eyes as she interrupted him that time. "You can stop right there! My personal life is none of your business, so I won't tolerate you wishing bad things to happen to it! If you continue on with behavior like that, I'll see to it that you are assigned to another physical therapist ASAP!"

He held up his hands to try to diffuse the situation. "Sorry! Sorry! I was just trying to have a little fun...I didn't mean to offend to you."

Maya continued glaring at him again. "Well, I didn't find it very funny at all! So, don't let it happen again!"

Ryan realized Maya was really angry. So, to keep from making matters worse, he just nodded and quickly hobbled out of the aquatic therapy area. To calm herself down, Maya took a few deep breaths. Once she had managed to get a hold of her emotions again, she went back to recording her notes from the session. But she couldn't focus on them as she kept thinking about the exchange she had just had with Ryan. One one level, Maya thought she might have overreacted just a tad bit, but on the other, she wanted to be firm so that Ryan knew that their relationship was purely professional and nothing more. After everything she had gone through to get Zack back in her life, she wasn't about to do anything to screw up her relationship with him. Of course, the more that she thought about it, Maya did have to laugh. She was pretty sure she had just confirmed at least one of the rumors circulating around campus about Ryan - he definitely would try to flirt with anything in a skirt or aquatard as the case would be. But when she realized those stories were now more than likely true, Maya couldn't help but wonder at the veracity of some of the others. While she felt they were more than likely made up by a scorned ex or something along those lines, she looked up at the hidden closed circuit cameras in the aquatic therapy area and was glad they were there just in case.

Maya turned back to finish up her paperwork, and just as she had closed the file, one of the physical therapy staff members walked in holding what looked like a small thermal cooler.

"This was just delivered for you, Maya."

Maya looked at it in surprise as she had no idea who would be sending her something like that. So, she took the thermal cooler and opened it up wondering what could be inside. But when she saw what it was, she couldn't help but smile and laugh. At seeing the confused look on the staff members's face, Maya lifted up what was inside to show her what was inside.

"Why would someone send you a churro?"

_Raleigh, North Carolina_

The following weekend was Father's Day, and fortunately, Kurt didn't mind that he wouldn't get to spend the day with his boys. He understood that Zack was somewhere in the Mediterranean Sea and that Cody and Bailey were off visiting yet another medical school. And that weekend was to be their second combined trip of visiting Kettlecorn while also knocking out an interview at a medical school not within driving distance. And this particular excursion was to visit the Duke University medical school in Durham, North Carolina. On that Saturday morning, like they had on almost every single interview they'd been on so far, they were given a tour of the facilities and campus before sitting down to have their interviews. Once their interviews were over, they headed over to the campus student center. This time, they had planned ahead and reserved a small room where they could change out of their interview suits in to more comfortable clothes for their flight. And once they were changed, they headed back to their rental car and began the drive back to the airport in Raleigh to catch their flight to Tulsa.

Once they checked their bags, got their boarding passes and made it through security, they were glad to be able to sit back at their gate and relax for a few minutes. And as they were sitting there awaiting their flight to be called, they had a chance to review their trip thus far.

"So, what did you think of Duke?"

Cody shrugged. "It was alright. I mean, it was nice enough I guess, and I know its a very good school. But something was off about it..."

Bailey nodded. "I know what you mean. I don't know how to explain it, but were was definitely something about it that felt very weird to me..."

He laughed. "Are you referring about the fact that everyone we met had a New Jersey accent?"

Her eyes went wide. "Yes! That's exactly what it was!"

Cody smiled. "Well, I'd heard the rumors that no one from the state of North Carolina actually went to school there, and that most of their students were from the New York/New Jersey are. I used to think it was all just a rumor propagated by the University of North Carolina, but I'm starting to think that it might be true..."

"Well, based on what we just experienced, I would tend to think its absolutely true..."

"It was almost as if we were back at Gertie's family's beach house again, didn't it?"

"That's exactly what it felt like." Bailey shook her head. "But other than that, it was pretty nice. However, I can't say it was any nicer than the other ones we've seen so far." She paused. "Though, this was the first time they made sure to show us the basketball arena..."

"Yeah, shouldn't it have been obvious that a gym or how good a school's basketball team plays isn't going to be a deciding factor in our decision? I mean...that should be a given."

"Tell me about it..." Bailey paused and looked over at Cody. "So, what do you think? We've now been to and interviewed at Harvard, Yale, Tufts, UMass, BU, Columbia, Cornell, Brown, Penn and now Duke. Sweetie, I don't know about you, but I can't help comparing every school we been to so far with Harvard. I guess I keep looking for one that is on par with it in my mind, but so far, I haven't found one..."

Cody nodded. "Same here, Bails. Which if you think about it, its kind of silly really. Are we really looking to find another school like one we've not only been accepted to but is also willing to pay us to go there?"

"But what about..."

He cut her off. "Lets just forget about that for now. Its like what your Dad said. We can't let what happened affect our thinking here. If Harvard is the right school for us, then we're wasting our time with these side trips."

"Alright, well, why don't we make a list of pros and cons about it. Pro - its the best medical school in the country."

"Con - their methods have already been proven to be kind of shady in some regards..."

"Pro - we won't have huge student loans to pay back when we graduate from there."

Cody paused to consider that. "I hadn't thought about that, but that's a great point. And I'm not sure if this next one would be a pro or con - we'd be back in Boston."

Bailey looked at him and frowned. "How would that be a con?"

"Well, I didn't know if you would rather start our new adventure somewhere new. Boston, we know pretty well, but we'll have a lot of family and friends around. While that would be good thing, they could also be a distraction..."

She just gave him a look. "Cody, no one is a distraction unless we let them be a distraction..."

"I guess you're right."

"Here's another pro. We'll be competing against the best of the best. We'll get to see how we measure up against them."

"True, and I would have to think that going to Harvard Medical School, it would look a lot better when it came time to apply for our residencies."

Bailey smiled. "Great point! It'll be just like how having Yale on our resume has gotten us into some doors for interviews already."

"Plus, it would give me the chance to prove a second Ivy League school wrong. I hope I've proven to Yale by now that they should have accepted me from the very beginning. Now, I could prove to Harvard that they shouldn't have treated me so poorly in the interview..."

"Exactly! You'll show them how lucky they should feel that you decided to go there. We both will."

Cody paused and just looked at her. "So, are we saying what I think we're saying?"

"I think so. I think we've made our decision."

He nodded. "I guess we have then. Well, on Monday, we need to start calling and canceling our other interviews. We'll have to do it as nicely as possible though. Don't want to burn any bridges that we don't have to."

"I completely agree. And then we'll have to tell our families and friends."

Cody couldn't help but to laugh. "I can just imagine what my Mom's reaction will be when we do..."

Bailey laughed too. "I bet I can too..." She paused. "Of course, that brings up another question. Do we want to move back into the Tipton full time or find our own place?"

"Our own place. I think its better that we be able to walk to class. I know Zack does it, but I don't want to chance traffic or a late train."

She nodded. "You're probably right about that. And I do like it how we've been able to walk to all of our classes at Yale. Alright, Sweetie...add looking for a place near campus to our list of things to do."

"Yeah, we should probably call the school and get them to recommend some places within walking distance when we call to accept."

Bailey was thrilled with their decision, but she had to make sure one last time Cody was too. "Sweetie, are you sure this is what you want to do? I don't mind to keep looking..."

Cody smiled. "I'm sure..." He paused and laughed. "Of course, you know when we get back to school, we can't tell anyone else but Gertie and Tapeworm about this. With the level of hatred between the two schools, we don't want to deal with any potential backlash from anyone..."

She laughed too. "Another good point. Well, we'll just have to keep it to ourselves that we are now officially Harvard bound for medical school..."

___To be Continued..._

**AN: 1) I hope no one takes any offense to the scene where Cody finally meets Arturo. All I was doing was paying an homage to a Friends episode I saw right before I wrote this chapter when Chandler went to a tailor to get pants made. I did refrain from going with 'cuppage' though. So, again, I hope no one will think I was trying to make fun of the ambiguity of Arturo's character. 2) I know some people wanted me to have Cody and Bailey go somewhere outside of New England for medical school. And to be honest, I seriously considered doing just that. But at the same time, those two are ones who want to go to the best and compete against the best. Plus, I remember in early episodes of SLOZAC, it was Cody's dream to go to Harvard. And, I thought I could have fun with the whole idea of him being banned from there thanks to Zack only to have it come around where he would get to go there after a few bumps in the road.**


	5. The Ides of June

_Episode 5_

_"The Ides of June"_

_I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did._

_Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them._

_Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves._

_And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so..._

_Kettlecorn_

Cody and Bailey's flight to Tulsa was finally called, and they were soon on their way back to Kettlecorn. And almost as soon as they got there, Cody and Bailey broke the news of them making their final medical school decision to her family. Of course, their choice of Harvard caught her mother and grandmother completely off guard. Naturally, they were curious why they would choose a school that they were both furious with just a month before. So, while Eunice and Grammy both wanted to know what had changed since then and why, Clyde just grinned and winked at Cody. And faced with that barrage of questions, Cody and Bailey simply assured everyone that they were sure of their decision and even went over the list of pros and cons they had made just hours earlier. And hearing their reasons seemed to satisfy Eunice and Grammy's concerns as then then understood why Cody and Bailey had made their choice. And that lead to a mini celebration as they congratulated them on their achieving another high honor and for their scholarships. Of course, Clyde just kept grinning as he realized that with their scholarships that he wouldn't have to find the money to pay for his daughter's continuing education.

But as happy as everyone was about Harvard, they were even more thrilled to hear about the further wedding plans that Cody and Bailey had made. Naturally, Bailey was a little apprehensive about how her sisters would handle London being her sole bridesmaid, but they were all very understanding about the situation and agreed that all nine of them would be a little much. And they completely understood Bailey's fear about upsetting some if she did choose others. On her part, Bailey was relieved everything worked out so well, and almost busted out laughing when Cody whispered to her his thoughts of why everyone was so cool about it.

"Bails...they're getting a free week in Hawaii out of this. I'm sure knowing they still have that takes away any sting there might have been..."

Of course, when it came time for Bailey to show everyone the sketches of her wedding dress, that meant Cody had to make himself scarce. Fortunately, Clyde asked him to help with something out in the barn. And once they got out there, Clyde just began laughing.

"Well, I guess some of what I told you must have stuck, huh?"

Cody smiled. "Yeah, it did. You were right. I decided to use what they did to me as motivation do be the best medical student they've got while I'm there..."

"Good for you...though, you may have some stiff competition in that matter from my daughter and your future wife..."

"That would be fine with me. If someone had to beat me, I would rather it be here. Besides, we inspire each other work harder which we think is a good thing. We feel that if we're fighting together, there's nothing or no one who can get in our way..."

Clyde nodded. "After some of the things I've seen, I can't argue with that..." He paused and teased his future son-in-law. "...but, what were you two thinking with some of those wedding ideas Bailey was talking about? I've never heard of anything like it before. I mean really - sand colored suits and everyone being barefoot?"

Cody shrugged his shoulders and laughed. "Hey, they weren't my ideas! But Bailey seems to like them, and if they make her happy, then they make me happy..."

"Well, as a father, I can't complain about that. I just get a feeling this wedding is going to be like nothing I've ever seen before..."

"Hey, my idea was to elope..."

Clyde laughed. "Yeah, like that was going to happen! You've been around the Pickett women long enough to know better." He shook his head. "Oh well, I guess I won't have to worry about packing my good pair of boots for that trip then. So, it sounds like you guys are almost done planning this thing and have decided on a medical school, and it not even July yet. I guess that frees up the rest of your summers, huh?"

Cody nodded. "Yeah, I guess it does. But after all the traveling we've done lately, I think I'll enjoy having a break for a little while. You know, give ourselves a chance to rest up before we head back and start our senior years." He paused. "Though, our last two semesters shouldn't be all that bad..."

"Well, you two have definitely earned a little bit of down time." Clyde laughed again. "But you'll want to rest up before next Christmas too. I get the feeling you're going to be busy while you're here..."

Cody looked at him curiously. "Why do you say that?"

Clyde just grinned. "Oh...you'll see. Just make sure you bring your boots and gloves again..."

_ Boston_

After their weekend in Kettlecorn, Cody and Bailey had to leave to head back to Boston on Sunday afternoon. Fortunately, there wasn't anything they had to be back for that night, but they did still have to be at work early on Monday morning. However, when they did get back to the Tipton, they found out they had gotten back just in time. Carey and Maya were about to order some takeout for dinner, and they invited Bailey and Cody to join them. So, while they unpacked their bags, Maya went out to pick up their food. And when she got back to Carey's suite, they all sat around the old table there.

Carey had to smile. "I remember when it used to be just Zack, Cody and I around this table. I guess enough time has elapsed that I'm now sitting around it with Cody and both of the women in my sons' lives." She sighed. "I only wish Zack was here with us to make it complete. I like it so much better when I'm surrounded by all of my family..."

Cody and Bailey just looked at each other and nodded. They both knew it was time to break their latest news to his mother.

"Ummm...Mom?"

Carey turned to him. "Yes, Cody?"

He paused. "Speaking of you liking it better when you're surrounded by your family, Bailey and I have some news to tell you in regards to that. But we're concerned that you might make too big a deal of it when we tell you. So, I'm asking you to try to keep your cool after we tell you..."

"What do you mean keep my cool? Why would I make a big deal of being surrounded by my family unless..." Carey looked back and forth between Cody and Bailey and suddenly got a bad feeling in the pit of her stomach. Immediately, her face was draining completely of all of its color. "Oh no!" She shook her head. "Please don't tell me that Bailey is pregnant! I'm not ready for that yet!"

Bailey's eyes went wide in surprise at hearing that. "Huh? What? Oh, no, no, no, no! Nothing like that, Carey!"

Slumping in her chair, Carey wiped the sweat from her brow and sighed in relief. "Oh thank goodness! Anything other than that I can handle right now..."

Cody rolled his eyes. "Geez, Mom. We would know better than just drop a big bomb like that on you! With something like that, we'd build you up to it first. Besides, while are getting married next summer, Bailey and I have a lot we want to accomplish before we would be ready to have kids. We want to wait at least until we get out of medical schools and are entrenched in our residencies." He shook his head. "All we were going to tell you was that Bailey and I have finally decided on which medical school that we're going to attend after we graduate. And that's all..."

Carey was still getting her heart rate back to normal and just nodded. "Well, that's good to know. I'm glad you too are thinking responsible. Now, what school is going to be the lucky one to get you two?"

Cody just grinned. "Well, we're going to take our talents to..." He paused. "...Harvard..."

His mother just nodded and smiled. "That's nice, Honey. And I hear its a very good school, probably the best in the country. I'm..." She paused as it slowly dawned on her the full implications of what her youngest had just said. "Wait a minute! Did you just say Harvard? As in Cambridge? As in just across town from here?"

Bailey smiled. "Yes, he just did say Harvard; No, the medical is actually on this side of the river over in the Longwood Medical next to Brigham & Women's hospital and the Children's Hospital of Boston; and Yes, we will be just across town from here..."

Carey just looked up towards the sky and shouted. "Thank you!" She looked back down at her son and soon to be daughter-in-law and had the biggest smile on her face. "This is going to be so wonderful! I'm going to have both of my boys back here in Boston with me again full time! And I'll have you both across the hall, so I'll be able to see you both everyday!"

Cody had to wince at hearing that. While his mother was happier than he'd seen her in a long time, he had a feeling the next piece of news he told her might bring her back to earth a little. "Actually, Mom, we won't be living across the hall. We're going to look for a place to live within walking distance of campus. We'd prefer not to have face traffic or trains in the morning..."

Carey smile faded. "Oh..."

Maya decided to speak up. "Its actually a really good idea, Carey. I feel the same way about my dorm. Only having to walk, you can sleep later and it just makes everything so much easier. And if they have to study late at night at the library, riding the subway at that time might not be the safest thing in the world..."

"Well, I guess that's true."

Bailey spoke up too. "But the important thing is that will only be fifteen minutes across town instead of a few hours away in another state..."

"That's a good point..." She shook her head and began laughing. "Why am I upset? My son and soon to be daughter-in-law are coming back to Boston! This is the best news I've gotten since I found out Zack was actually going to go to college! We should go out to dinner to celebrate!"

Cody laughed. "Ummm...Mom. We're having dinner right now."

Carey paused. "Oh yeah...We'll, then I'm taking us all out for ice cream afterwards to celebrate. Hurry up and clean your plates and we'll head out!"

And that's what they did. Once they finished eating, Carey went to change and get her purse. And while she did, Bailey turned to Maya.

"Thanks for the backup back there..."

She smiled. "No worries. Its the least I could do after you two have been helping me study this summer. And congratulations to you both on Harvard, and welcome back to Boston." She paused. "I have to admit that I am a bit curious though. I thought you guys told us that Cody's interview at Harvard had been a complete disaster. What happened?"

Briefly, Cody and Bailey explained to her about them getting their acceptance letters and what they said the same day Zack found out he was going to the boat. They went on to explain what they decided to do, and why they finally decided on Harvard in the end.

"We would have told you and Zack about them that day, but we figured you two had enough going on with jim having to leave for the summer."

Maya nodded. "Yeah, I can definitely understand that. I'm not sure I would have been in a condition to have really heard what you said..." She paused as another thought entered her mind. If Cody and Bailey were going to be attending Harvard, maybe it wasn't completely off the table for Zack yet either. But she decided the would wait until he returned to Boston to tell him about it. For one, she wanted to do it in person. And for another, Cody and Bailey getting into Harvard was their news to share with him and not hers. Finally, he didn't want it to be something to weigh on his mind while he was away and could do nothing about it. But that didn't stop her from thinking about the possibilities when she was snapped back to reality when she heard Bailey's voice again.

"You're thinking about Zack right now, aren't you?

Maya turned to her and sighed. "Yeah, I am. I know he'll be home in a couple of weeks, but I can't wait to see him again."

"I bet. I remember the summer after our sophomore years of high school when Cody and I were separated for the first time. I missed him like crazy while he was here and I was in Kettlecorn. And we had to rely on letters and e-mails to keep in touch because he was reluctant to call me..." Bailey laughed. "His voice was cracking then, and it really embarrassed him. I guess he didn't want me to hear him like that..."

Cody rolled his eyes. "It wasn't that bad..." Bailey just gave him a look though, and he sighed. "Okay, maybe it was. But even though I was embarrassed about how I sounded, I still missed Bailey something fierce. I was so happy when it was time to return to the boat so I could see her again."

Bailey smiled at him. "Me too. And then there was the icing on the cake. Cody had grown a few inches and was finally taller than me. I didn't have to slouch any longer..."

Maya laughed. "Well, I don't think I have to worry about Zack's voice cracking or him growing on me. I don't think he would mind though as he's still mad that Cody broke six feet and he hasn't. But I just worry about how busy he's been. Whenever I talk to him, it seems like he's perpetually exhausted..."

Cody laughed himself. "Zack's actually having to work hard on the ship? There is karma!"

After ice cream, Cody and Bailey were ready to call it a night. And its not like their Monday wouldn't be a busy one. Aside from work and even though they had made their decision, Cody and Bailey had to begin making numerous phone calls regarding their choice. The first was to Harvard to formally notify them that they would be accepting both their admissions and financial aid packages. And while they were on the phone, they asked the admissions office if they could mail them some information on housing in the vicinity of the school. After that, it was time to make the calls to the other schools to cancel the future interviews they had left. They decided to be honest and tell them that Harvard had not only accepted them but offered full rides. The other schools weren't necessarily happy, but they did understand that when Harvard offered you a full ride, it was hard to turn down. Next on the list was to call Kurt and tell him of their decision. Naturally, he was ecstatic and proud of them both. Finally, their last phone call was to reschedule their flights for their final trip by to Kettlecorn for Bailey's birthday. Instead of a stop over in St. Louis, they would have direct flights in and out of Tulsa.

With that all taken care of, they knew they were looking at a much more relaxing second half of their summer. And for the rest of that week, they took it as easy as they could. But for Cody and Bailey, taking it easy didn't mean the same thing that it did for other people. And unfortunately for Maya, she got to experience that first hand. One that Thursday evening, she got home from work and found them lounging around on the couch. Cody looked like he was thoroughly engrossed in an episode of _Chopped_ while Bailey was cuddled up next to him reading a book. Those activities would be considered normal enough, but that wasn't really what stood out to her.

When she saw what they were wearing, Maya shook her head. "Are you two both wearing a Forever Lazy?"

**(AN: For anyone who doesn't know what these are, they're a few steps beyond a Snuggie. If you still want to know what they look like, Google it or go to the company's website.)**

Bailey looked up and smiled. "Yeah, aren't they great? We saw them advertised late one night on TV, and they were offering a buy one get one free deal. Tapeworm and Gertie dared us to order them, so we did. And we're glad we did. We absolutely love them!"

Maya did everything she could not to laugh. "Yeah, they're...interesting alright..." She paused. "Has London seen you both wearing them yet?"

"I don't think so. Why?"

She just grinned. "Just...please make sure I'm around when she does..."

_The S.S. Tipton_

While it had only taken the ship a week to get to the Mediterranean Sea, it had spend the next several weeks taking its time moving around it from port to port. They had stopped at such locales as the South of France, Monaco, numerous ports in Italy and was currently on its way towards the Greek Isles. And like he had told Maya, Zack spent the almost all of his time constantly on the move doing one thing or another. Well, except for Sunday as they were his day off. Of course, he spent those doing the legwork for his summer school assignment. So, with no actual free time, Zack just grew tireder and tireder. In fact, there were days he actually missed working at the Easy Squeezie. At least there, he would have the occasional down time where he could goof off. But that Friday in particular had been a rough one for him. He had at least walked the entire length of the ship at least three times, and his feet were killing him. By dinner time came around, he could barely hold his head up he was so exhausted.

"Man, you're looking rough, Little Buddy..."

Zack looked up and sighed. "Well, Kirby, if its possible, I think I probably feel even worse than I look."

Kirby smiled. "A lot different being on the ship as a full time employee, huh?"

"You're telling me. I liked it being a student a whole lot better."

"Yeah, it was so much fun having all you kids on board. You guys were such a good group, and I don't know how you all did it, but there was always something going on. I bet I spent half my time getting involved in something or another with you all." He laughed. "I still remember when you all locked yourself down in the boiler room..."

"I remember. And that's one of the things that sucks the most. I miss having everyone else here. I miss seeing Woody get that look in his eyes when he saw the Mexican buffet. And I even miss hearing the noises his body would make at nights after he destroyed it. The other night, I heard an owl and was disappointed to realize that it was really just an owl. I miss seeing Addison on one of her sugar binges and then crashing afterwards. I miss scheming with Marcus on what our next prank will be. I miss London being...well...London. I even miss seeing Cody and Bailey being so nauseatingly sweet with each other that I was forced to make fun of them." He sighed again. "But most of all, I miss seeing Maya every day..."

Kirby laughed. "Well, life at sea ain't for everybody..."

"Tell me about it. I'm starting to realize that all the fun I had before wasn't because I was on the boat, but because I was surrounded by all my friends."

Kirby shook his head and laughed again. "Wow! Cody told me in his emails that you had grown up, but I can see with my own two eyes just how much you have. Guess I don't have to worry about you stealing my uniform again, huh?"

Zack shook his head. "How do you do it, Kirby? I know Esteban has Francesca here with him. But don't you ever miss having...you now...companionship?"

He grinned at Zack. "And what makes you think I'm going without female companionship, Zack?"

Zack paused. "Well, the fact that you have dinner with me almost every night kind of indicated that...am I wrong?"

Kirby kept smiling. "What if I told you the reason I did that was because the woman I'm seeing works during dinner time?"

Zack paused again as a thought crossed his mind. He turned and saw Bertha, the kind yet portly cook smiling at them, and Zack began laughing. "You and Bertha are an item, Kirby?"

"What can I say? She loves to cook and I love to eat..."

"Well, congratulations, Man. I'm happy for you."

"Thanks. I'm pretty happy myself."

"But why didn't you tell me this before?"

Kirby shrugged. "I could see you were missing Maya something fierce. I didn't want to rub it into your face that I had my lady here while you were so far away from yours..."

Zack sighed. "Yeah, I can see that. And it does remind me - I'm the only one here who can't be with the one they love..."

"Look at it this way though. In a little over a week, you're heading back to Boston and going to get to see Maya again. And once this summer is over, you'll be back with her full time..." Kirby laughed. "Face it, Zack...your brother isn't the only one who has found his match. Wouldn't surprise me if I wasn't going to be going to another wedding for one of the Martin twins sooner than later..."

Zack's eyes went wide. "Whoa, whoa, whoa!"

Kirby just gave him a look. "Oh please..."

"Don't get me wrong, I love Maya, but I don't think either one of us is quite ready for that yet."

"Maybe not. But answer me this - when you picture your future, she's a big part of it and right there with you, isn't she?"

Zack didn't answer, but he didn't have to. He already knew the answer to that question.

And Kirby knew he did and just laughed again. "See?"

"Yeah, you're right, Kirby..."

"So...what are you going to do about it?"

_Zack and Cody's Suite_

Without having to go on any more interview trips, that freed up the rest of their summer and left Cody and Bailey with a lot of free time on their hands. And for that first week, they had been content with just going to work before coming home and taking it easy. But by the end of that week, they starting growing a little restless. Sure, every night, they still tutored Maya in physics, but they were really beginning to really miss their own scholastic endeavors. And there was still almost two more months before the fall semester at Yale would begin back on August 27th. And early that next week, it finally came to a head.

"Bails, I know I was looking forward to having some down time, but now that we've had some..." He shook his head. "Is it just me, or doesn't it seem like we could be a lot more productive than we have been lately?"

Bailey smiled. "I don't know about that. I think we've had a very productive summer. We've picked a medical school and we've practically finished planning our wedding. I doubt very many people have gotten done what we have in such a short time frame."

"That's what I mean though. We've already got those done now. Now, we've hit a lull where we have nothing pressing on us to get done."

She paused to think. "Yeah, I can see what you mean."

"And its not that I don't love having down time with you. I do more than anything." He sighed. "I don't know. I can't even formulate what it is I'm trying to say."

Bailey grabbed his hand. "I think I completely understand what you're trying to say. We're both wired to constantly be doing something. Neither one of us likes to be idle for too long."

Cody sighed. "Exactly!"

She grinned. "Well, what would you say if I said I had an idea that would solve this problem?"

"I'd say I'm all ears."

"Well, you know by the end of this calendar year, we'll have to turn in our senior projects in EP&E. And we're already off to a great start. Thanks to our three seminars and the final papers we had to do in each of them, we probably have close to two thirds of our research already done for our big projects. Even if we didn't do anything else before school started, we'd already be off to a good start. But, Cody, Boston is full of university libraries. Maybe we could spend the rest of our summer finishing up the research we need for them?"

Cody's eyes lit up. "I like it! And we could have outlines done to present to our faculty sponsor before the semester begins. If she likes them and signs off on them, all we would have to do the rest of the semester is actually write them. That would give us plenty of time to make edits, turn in a rough draft for review, make more edits and then hand in our final drafts..."

"You're right! And since we're already here in Boston, this would be a good way for us to go ahead and familiarize ourselves with the Harvard Library. And with the nature of our paper, we could check out the medical library there too!" She grinned. "This can be our other project for the rest of the summer..."

He frowned. "Our other project? What was the first one?"

Bailey laughed. "Looking for a place over near the school. I got the information in the mail from Harvard today giving us some leads on housing for next year. I figured we could drive over to the Longwood Medical area on Saturday and take a quick look around and see if there was anything we wanted to follow up on later. I know everywhere is still looking to lease for this fall, but it won't hurt for us to go ahead and look around. Maybe by Thanksgiving, we can get our names in somewhere."

Cody just shook his head and laughed too. "How did I forget that? And doing that on Saturday sounds like a plan to me..."

She teased him. "Well, that's what I'm here for. As your future wife, its my job to constantly remind you of things you've forgotten..."

He leaned over and kissed her. "Works for me. I look forward to all of your 'honey-do' lists when we're older..."

She smiled back at him. "Good. But for now, I say we enjoy the rest of today before we get back to work tomorrow..." She paused and grinned even wider. "What time is it?"

Cody checked his watch. "About six thirty. Why?"

Bailey leaned in and kissed him. "Well, today is one of the days that Maya won't get off work for another hour, so we really do have the place all to ourselves for a little while..."

_Boston University Fitness & Recreation Center_

That same week was also Maya's last full week of her summer school physics class. Like she had told Zack, her final in it would be on the Tuesday of the following week. So, she would have all weekend to study for it. But as daunting as that seemed, Maya wasn't really all that worried about it. Thus far, she had practically aced all of her homework assignments and gotten A's on the first two tests. And thanks to some quick calculations from Cody and Bailey, she realized she would have to get below a 20 on the final to not get at least a B in the class, and that made her ecstatic. Of course, Maya knew she had an advantage over everyone else in her class in that she had her own private tutors. And while she was appreciative of all of their help, its not to say that it was always easy with those two. For one, they would sometime give her differing ways of doing things that they both felt was superior to the other's method. And for another, she couldn't help but notice how enthralled Cody had been with the new state of the art scientific calculator she had bought for her classes. When she mentioned it to Zack, he told her to just ignore it as Cody had a past history of bonding with them.

But as well as she had been doing in her class, she couldn't wait for her final to get there. Not only would it be the end of the first summer school session, but Zack was supposed to return back to Boston that same day. That thought kept her going even when some of the days seemed to drag by. Fortunately for her, work wasn't being a distraction as ever since she had made it known to Ryan that she had a boyfriend, he seemed to have respected that fact. Well, she thought he had until the Thursday of that week. When they had finished up his session for the day, he hung around the aquatic therapy area to talk to her.

"You know...I'm seriously starting to think you're making up having a boyfriend."

Maya just looked over at him. "And what would ever give you a silly idea like that?"

"Well, I've never met this guy. He's never once showed up here or after class to see you. Those are things a boyfriend would usually do." He grinned. "I know I would..."

She shook her head and sighed. "Not that its any of your business, but he's abroad this summer getting credit for a class he needs to graduate next spring."

Ryan laughed. "Uh huh. Maya, that's the oldest story in the book. Its a second cousin of 'I can't because I'm washing my hair.'..." He shook his head. "Well, I'm not buying it. I really think you don't have a boyfriend, but I can't imagine why you would lie to me about it."

Maya could only rub her eyes before glaring at him. "You know what? I really don't care what you think. I know what the truth is, and that's all that matters to me. Remember, my personal life is none of your business..."

"No need to get upset here, but I see this as a challenge. I am going to prove this supposed boyfriend is nothing but a myth..."

She just sighed and turned back to his file. "Whatever you say..."

Ryan smiled. "You don't believe I can, huh? Well, how about we make it interesting then?"

Maya didn't even bother looking up. "And how would we do that?"

"Easy. If I can prove you don't have a boyfriend, you agree to go out with me...after I'm done being your patient of course..."

Maya looked up and smirked at him. "And if you can't?"

He shrugged. "Then for the rest of the time we work together, I will keep it completely professional and never intrude into your personal life ever again..."

She just looked at him. "Is that all? That's the way its supposed to be anyways..." She turned back to the file but was quickly realizing just how arrogant Ryan really was. If only she could teach him a lesson he'd never forget. And that thought caused her to have a great idea. Maya looked back up at him with a smile on her face.

"How about this? If you fail, you not only will keep our sessions completely professional and never intrude on my personal life again, but you'll also agree to foot the bill for a night out on the town for me and my guy. He gets back to Boston on Tuesday, and I'd like to take him out for a welcome home celebration. I think $500 should cover it..."

Ryan paused at hearing her up the ante. But he was so sure he was right that he just smiled. "Its a deal!"

Maya wasn't done just yet. "So, what kind of proof will it take for you to accept that I really do have a boyfriend? I don't want you trying to back out on this deal when you lose..."

"Hey, if you can get third party confirmation from a reputable source like a university employee, I'll accept it. But you won't be able to because no one can confirm a figment of your imagination..."

Maya didn't respond though. She was too busy thinking with the $500, and how much fun she and Zack were going to have with it.

_The Lobby of the Tipton Hotel_

On Saturday afternoon, Cody and Bailey were ready to head out to look at prospective places to live in the Longwood Medical neighborhood. They were armed with a map and a list of potential places they thought they could afford with the housing allowance Harvard would be giving them. So, when they got to the lobby, they were about to cross it to get to the elevator to the parking garage when they heard their names being called.

"Bailey! Cody!"

Both turned around to see London quickly walking towards them. "Good! I finally found you two. The wedding planner sent me a message today after reviewing the ideas we had for her. I need to sit down with you two to discuss and finalize a few things as soon as possible. Can you come up to my penthouse right now so we can get this done?"

Bailey shook her head. "We can't right now, London. We're on our way to look at places near Harvard's medical school where we might live next year."

She shook her head. "I still don't understand why you two won't just stay here..."

Bailey smiled. "Because we want to be close enough campus so we can walk. That's why."

"Whatever..." London sighed. "Come with me then. I'll drive you over in my limo and we can talk on the ride over. Just give my driver the directions to wherever you need to go."

Cody and Bailey looked at each other and shrugged. They guessed that would work, and it would save them the worry of having to find a parking space. So, on the ride over to the Longwood Medical Area, they went over everything they needed to and finished up just as they arrived in the neighborhood. And, when they got out the car, Cody and Bailey began trying to match up addresses with the actual buildings on the street.

But London was not impressed at all with what she saw. "This place is a dump! You guys seriously want to live around here?"

Cody laughed and pointed. "Yes, we do. You see the red brick building about a quarter of a mile away?"

London looked over. "Yeah. So?"

"That's the Harvard Medical School. That's where we'll have our classes and where the medical library is."

Bailey nodded. "London, this place is all about location, location, location." She paused as she looked around again. "Though, I admit I'm kind of surprised by the lack of higher quality, more upscale places. I mean...look at that strip of run down houses right there..." She shook her head. "What a waste..."

London was intrigued though. "Why is it a waste?"

Cody pointed again. "You see that that building over there. That's Brigham & Women's Hospital. And next to it is the Children's Hospital of Boston." He pointed in another direction. "And about a half mile that way is Fenway Park."

She paused. "The baseball stadium? So, we're close to where Maddie's family used to live then?"

He paused before laughing. "Yeah, I guess we are. I almost forgot she lived across the street from Fenway."

"But her neighborhood was a lot nicer than this area is..."

Bailey just nodded again. "Like I'm sure this was at one point." She sighed. "If had that kind of money, I'd buy that row of houses over there, completely tear them down and build new modern ones."

Cody nodded too. "You'd make a killing just from doctors working in the hospitals alone. I'm sure they'd love to be within walking distance of their jobs especially on days they are on call..." He shrugged and turned to Bailey. "Oh well, we should start looking and see what might be available to us, Bails. But after seeing this neighborhood up close, I'm afraid we're going to have to hire an apartment search firm to find something close, affordable, and most importantly, that won't fall down around us..."

"I think you may be right, Sweetie. Lets see what there is anyways while were here."

Cody and Bailey began to walk off when they noticed London was still standing there seemingly lost in thought.

"You coming with us, London?"

She shook her head slowly. "Actually, no. I need to make a phone call..."

They shrugged and walked on while London pulled out her cell phone. Immediately, she dialed and waited for the person on the other line to pick up.

"Daddy, its me! I think I've found another way for us to make a boatload of money!"

_Boston University Fitness & Recreation Center_

It was finally the Tuesday before the 4th of July. Maya had her physics final that morning, and she thought it would have been brutal if she hadn't been so ready for it. Unfortunately for her, she still had to go to work that afternoon before she could head over to Logan to pick up Zack at the airport. And with no lab that day, she was at the fit&rec center by noon. And work couldn't have gone any slower. Every five minutes, she kept checking her watch seeing if it was time for her to leave yet, but it wasn't. Seven o'clock that evening was going to take forever to get there.

Finally, it got to late afternoon, and she could focus on her last task of that day. And after she put Ryan through his aquatic therapy session, she was quick to head to the ladies locker room and change immediately after it was over. As quickly as she could, she wrote up her notes on the session and was out in the lobby ready to hand his folder over the girl working the desk that evening.

"You're getting out of here quick today..."

But it wasn't the girl behind the desk who had said that - it was too masculine. Maya sighed as turned to see Ryan standing next to her. "Yes, I'm supposed to pick my boyfriend up at the airport in about an hour. I'm trying to hurry so I can get over to Logan as soon as I can..."

He shook his head and laughed. "You're really going to great lengths to perpetuate this story, huh? Why don't you just give it up and go out with me this weekend?"

Maya glared at him. "No thank you! I'll be spending this weekend with my BOYFRIEND. I've told you that several times already..."

Ryan was about to respond to her when they both heard a voice behind them. "You heard the lady...she's going to be spending the weekend with me."

Maya's eyes went wide and she quickly turned around. "Zack!"

_To be Continued..._

**AN: Just a quick question - what happened to all of the reviews I normally get? LOL I think I only have 36 through 4 chapters. So, I'm not above shameless pandering for more. So, with that said, chapter 6 will be posted on Thursday night...if there are 50 reviews by then. Okay, I just felt dirty doing that LOL**_  
_


	6. My Boyfriend's Back!

_Episode 6_

_"__My Boyfriend's Back!_"

_I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did._

_Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them._

_Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves._

_And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so..._

_Boston University Fitness & Recreation Center_

Immediately, when Maya turned around, she saw Zack standing there in the lobby of the physical therapy area. After blinking her eyes several times to make sure he wasn't a mirage or a figment of her imagination, she ran over as fast as she could and engulfed Zack in a tight embrace. And feeling him in her arms, she immediately knew that him actually being there was real. Maya didn't know why he was standing there in the lobby or how he got there, but at that moment, neither of those mattered to her. She was just reveling in the fact that he really was there with her again, and she almost had tears in her eyes because she was so happy. And because it had been so long since she had actually got to physically touch him, she was in no hurry to let him go and just keep squeezing him harder. But eventually, she had to when she heard him gasp out.

"Maya...need...air...ribs...breaking..."

She forced herself to pull back, and she looked up at him with the biggest smile on her face.

"Zack? What are you doing here? I was just about to leave to go meet you at the airport! You're flight wasn't due to land for another hour..."

Zack patted his bag sitting on the floor next to his foot. "I know, but since I worked all day this past Saturday, Esteban told me I could leave earlier than I had planned on. So, I called the airline and was able to get a seat on an earlier flight in to Boston. I was going to call you and tell you but decided to surprise you instead. About an hour ago, I landed over at Logan, and immediately caught the subway straight here..." He paused as he looked over at Ryan. "Enough of that though. What's going on here? What did I walk in on exactly?"

Maya followed his eyes to see what he was looking at and sighed. "You remember the hockey player I told you I was helping to rehab? Well, that's him. That's Ryan McDonald. And as for what's going on here, he and I were having...a little disagreement. You see, I keep telling him that I have a boyfriend, but he didn't seem to believe me. In fact, he keeps asking me out thinking I'm making the whole thing up. I'm just glad you're here now so I can finally show him once and for all that you are my boyfriend and you do exist."

Zack turned his attention back to Ryan and gave him his best menacing look. "Well, Maya does indeed have a boyfriend, and said boyfriend is me. So, I'd appreciate it if you wouldn't harass my girlfriend any more. Got it?"

But Ryan was undeterred. "So says you. How do I know you two are really dating? I mean - for all I know, you could just be a friend of hers that she asked to do her a favor..." He laughed. "I will say, bringing the luggage with you was a nice touch. If you had said you had just come from the airport without any bags, I would have immediately know this was a set up..."

Before Zack could say anything, Maya gave Ryan a look of her own. "Okay, if Zack wasn't my boyfriend, would I do this?" She turned and planted one of the hottest kisses on Zack that she could. In fact, it was the kind that made Zack's mind go completely blank for a few seconds and his knees weak.

Ryan shrugged. "Maybe. You know the old saying - desperate times call for desperate measures. I'm still not buying it though."

By then, Zack had regained his mental functions and was able to reestablish coherent thinking. So, he pulled his cell phone out of his pocket, and after clicking on a few things, he showed it to Ryan. "How about this then? Its a picture of Maya and I from our senior prom. I think the way it shows us dancing together should be definitive enough proof for you..."

Ryan shrugged again. "Again, that proves nothing to me. For all I know, you two did date in high school but broke up sometime afterwards. Actually, that proves my point even more. I betting you two stayed friends afterwards, and due to your prior relationship, it made it easier for you two to pull off this little charade. I mean, if you dated then, obviously you've kissed before, so that's why it wasn't in any way awkward for either of you. But like I said, it doesn't prove that you're currently dating..."

Maya just shook her head as she was getting really frustrated at Ryan's refusal to actually believe that Zack was indeed her boyfriend. But before she could say something hasty, she she saw something or rather someone that made her smile. Walking into the physical therapy area was none other than the security guard at her old dorm, Rosie. Not only had he helped save her from Bruno the year before, he had met Zack several times and knew him to in fact be her boyfriend. And as soon as she saw him, Maya had an idea.

"Rosie! What are you doing here?"

He sighed in relief when he saw it was Maya who had recognized him. "Maya! Oh thank goodness its you. I was hoping you can help me out here. This afternoon, I caught some kid trying to steal supplies from the painter's truck over at the dorm. I gave chase to him and actually caught him..." Rosie paused and grinned. "I don't think he'll be doing anything like that again. But in the process, I think I might have pulled my hamstring. My boss told me to head over here and that someone here might be able to help me out with it. I remembered you telling me you worked over here, so I was hoping I'd run into you..."

Maya just smiled. "Don't worry, Rosie, you've come to the right place..." She turned to the girl sitting behind the desk. "Leigh, could you go see if any of the therapists could fit Rosie into their schedules before they call it a night. If they ask, tell them that it would be a huge favor to me..."

Leigh nodded, and she headed back to find out if anyone could. And as she left, Maya turned back to Rosie and gestured towards Zack. "And Rosie, you of course remember my boyfriend, don't you?"

He nodded and smiled. "I sure do. Good to see you again, Zack. How is your summer going on that boat? You staying out of trouble?"

Zack just smiled to himself as he though he knew exactly what Maya had just done, and he was proud of her. "Yeah, I am. Actually, my buddy Kirby who is the head of security there makes sure I do..."

"Good. Kirby's a good man. Stick with him, and you'll be just fine."

That surprised Zack. "You know Kirby?"

Rosie laughed. "Sure do. Kirby and I played on the same arena football team together. We we're both lineman. We've kept in touch over the years, and when Maya told me that you and she had graduated from Seven Seas High, I recognized the name of it. So, after that little incident we had, I wanted to make sure you were a good guy. So, I called Kirby, and he told me that while you could be a little rambunctious that you were a good kid. That's why I cut you a little more slack than I do everyone other guy that comes into my dorm."

Ryan spoke up. "So...you're saying you actually know these two are dating?"

Rosie nodded. "Sure do. All you have to do is to see them together to know that..." He paused and his expression grew darker. "You aren't trying to cause problems for them are you?"

Ryan held up his hands. "No, sir!"

At that time, Leigh came back out into the lobby. "Sherry said she could take him right now if he was ready."

Maya smiled. "Well, there you go, Rosie. Go get that hammy worked on. The ladies of our dorm need you in tip top shape come this fall."

He laughed again. "Thanks again, Maya. I'll see you guys later. And Zack, tell Kirby I said hello." And with that, Rosie followed Leigh into the back.

Once they were gone, Maya turned back to Ryan and smirked. "Okay, there you go. Just like you said, independent verification from a third party. And an university employee to boot. I believe that should settle this once and for all..."

Ryan wasn't happy, but he had to admit to himself that she had done exactly what he had said for her to prove it. "Fine. I guess this guy is your boyfriend then..." He shook his head. "Well, I'm a man of my word, and I'll keep the promises I made."

"Good." Maya smiled and held out her hand. "Just pay me the $500 you owe me, and Zack and I will be on our way..."

He just gave her an incredulous look. "You thought I was serious about that?"

She just kept smiling. "Yes, I did, and you did just say you were a man of your word, right?"

Of course, Zack was completely confused about what they were talking about now. "Wait a minute! Why does he owe you $500 now?"

Maya turned to Zack and smiled. "Oh, I forgot that part. You see, Ryan was so convinced that he was right, that we made a little bet. If he could prove I didn't have a boyfriend, I would go out with him. If I could prove that I did, he would respect my private life, not bother me about it ever again and pay me $500 on top of that. Well, since I knew you did in fact exist, I knew the first part was moot. But I figured this would be a good way to make an easy $500..." She paused. "Are you mad that I made a bet like that?"

Zack just laughed. "Nah, I'm not mad at you. Actually, I'm incredibly proud of you. That was an easy way to make some money. I'm pretty sure I would have done the exact same way if the situation had been reversed..."

She laughed. "I was pretty sure you would have too..."

Zack turned back to Ryan. "Well, you made a bet with the lady and lost. Where I come from, if you make a bet, you live up to it. So, are you going to pay the lady or not?"

Ryan glared at him. "Of course I'm not! And even if I was, do you think I have that kind of money on me right now?"

Zack grinned. "On you right now, no, probably not. I mean, other than my friend, London, who would? But there is an ATM down in the lobby. We'll just follow you down there so you can withdraw the cash..." He paused. "Unless you bet money you didn't have. And only the total scumbag would do that..."

"Oh, I have the money, but didn't you hear what I said? I'm not going to pay her jack!"

Zack shook his head. "I was hoping you weren't going to do this the hard way..." Zack turned to Maya. "Don't you think the gossip columnist at the school paper would love to hear all about this? They would run with this for quite a while. Any kind of scandal involving one of the big athletes on campus would be too much for them to turn down - especially during the summer. Especially with the part about him harassing another coed after she repeatedly told him that she had a boyfriend..." He turned back to Ryan and smirked at him. "Of course, I don't think welching on a bet would be the worst thing they've ever accused you of doing though, now would it?"

Maya smirked at Ryan too. "And I'd hate to have to go get Rosie and tell him about this. You heard what he said, he views it as his responsibility to take care of his girls. And trust me, I've seen first hand what he's capable of doing when someone messes with one of us..."

Ryan's eyes went wide. "Are those threats?"

She laughed. "No...more like promises."

He shook his head and sighed. "Fine! I'll get you your damn money! The sooner I can hobble to the ATM, the sooner I can get out here too..."

About twenty minutes later, he counted out twenty-five $20 bills and handed them to Maya. "There - $500. Satisfied now?"

She smiled. "I sure am..." She turned to Zack. "Come on, Babe. Lets get you back home and settled in. Suddenly, I have the sudden urge to go somewhere really nice for a welcome home dinner tonight."

Ryan rolled his eyes in disgust, and began hobbling out of the building. But before he could, Zack stopped him. "Sorry I didn't recognize you earlier. I'm used to seeing you face down on the ice after blowing an easy empty netter. Oh, and next time Maya tells you something, I expect you to believe her. And if I hear that you've bothered her again, you can expect to see me again. Here's a warning - I'm a green belt, so I won't need Rosie's help in teaching you a lesson. Understand me?"

_Zack and Cody's Suite_

About a half hour after they had finally left the BU fit&rec center, Zack and Maya returned back to the Tipton Hotel. After catching the elevator up to the 23rd floor, Zack walked back into his suite for the first time in over six weeks. And when he did, he saw Cody and Bailey sitting around the the kitchen table with their laptops in front of them seemingly hard at work on something. Zack just shook his head and laughed.

"Hey you two! I'm back!"

Cody and Bailey just looked up briefly, nodded their hellos and returned back to what they were working on.

Zack shrugged. "Okay...well, nice to see two of you again too..."

Cody kept his eyes focused on the screen in front of him. "No offense, Bro, but were trying to get something really important done here as quickly as we can..."

Zack turned to Maya and laughed. "Well, its good to see some things haven't changed while I've been gone..." He looked back over at his brother and soon to be sister-in-law. "So, what are you two doing anyways?" He teased them. "Let me guess. You're rating your medical school visits based on some weird and obscure criteria that only you two would find important?"

Bailey spoke up this time, but she too kept eyes focused on her laptop screen. "Actually, we picked a medical school a few weeks ago. We've already called to accept and cancel future interviews. So, that's the least of our worries right now..."

That caught Zack's attention. "Oh yeah? What school did you two end up choosing?"

"Harvard."

"Harvard?" He looked at them like they had both grown second heads. "But what about how they treated Cody during his interview? You guys said you were going to pretend like that school didn't exist anymore! And Codester, you said you were still banned from there after all! What exactly have I missed in the past six weeks? And why did you guys change your mind about that place?"

Cody and Bailey looked at each other and sighed. Seems like they were going to have to take a break from their project for a few minutes to explain everything again. So, they both turned to face him and began giving Zack the abridged version of everything that had happened. "So, in the end, we weighed all of our options and decided to to matriculate to Harvard next fall after all. Like we said, we would have told you about our letters that day, but you already had your own drama to deal with..."

Zack just looked at them for a few seconds before laughing. "If you guys say so. But if that's what you two want, more power to you. And congratulations. I guess I won't have this place to myself any longer once you guys move back to Boston full time."

Bailey shook her head. "Actually, you will. We're in the process of looking for a place within walking distance of the medical school over in the Longwood Medical area. While you may like taking the subway to get to your classes, we'd rather be close enough to walk to ours."

He shrugged. "Well, either way, I guess it will be nice to have you guys back in town. I'm sure Mom's on cloud nine about that too..." He paused. "So, if you're not hard at work on that, you guys must be working on wedding plans then."

Cody shook his head this time. "Actually, no. We've already had everything for it pretty much finalized for a couple of weeks now. The invitations should go out in the mail next Monday. And the wedding announcement will be run in the newspapers in Kettlecorn, New Haven, Miami, and here in Boston in the next several weeks. London even brought in a professional photographer to take our picture for it. Speaking of the wedding though, Zack, this is your official confirmation that you are indeed my best man. I know we've both been under the assumption that you would be, but consider this your official notification. So, don't be surprised if London tries to get in touch with while you're home so she can explain what all she expects from you..."

"Works for me, but all I have to do is plan the bachelor party, stand there next to you and make a toast at the reception, right?"

Bailey and Cody looked at each other and grinned. "I think we'll wait for London to tell you..."

"Okay..." Zack paused again. "So, if not medical school or your wedding, again, what are you two working on that's so important?"

Cody sighed. "There is this article in the New England Journal of Medicine that we're trying to find a full copy of. From the snippets we've seen of it referenced in other articles, we think it would be germane to both of our EP&E senior projects. If it says what we think it says, then this might lead us down the path of finishing up our research for them this summer."

Zack just stared at them for a few minutes before rolling his eyes at them. "Seriously? You guys are really working ahead on school work for next semester already?" He turned to Maya. "I was right - somethings definitely have not changed around here..." He paused as something else occurred to him. "Speaking of schools though, have I gotten any envelopes from any school in the past few weeks?"

Maya just smiled at him. "As a matter of fact, you did. A letter from BU came for you a few weeks ago. Its over in your mail slot."

Quickly, Zack ran over to see if it was what he hoped it would be, but he just sighed we he saw what it really was. "Its from the registrar's office. These are just my grades..."

Maya nudged him. "Well, lets see how you did."

He shrugged and tore into the envelope. Pulling the slip of paper out containing his grades, he scanned it quickly. "Huh...a 3.67. Of course, I only had three classes last semester that counted for grade credit, but still not bad..."

She just gave him a look. "A 3.67 is just 'not bad'? That's amazing. Besides, you beat me. I only had a 3.53."

Zack kissed her cheek before turning and smirking at Cody and Bailey. "Let me guess...the usual for you two again, right?"

Both Cody and Bailey looked up from their laptops again and smiled. "Uh huh."

Zack shook his head. "Well, you guys can slack off now that you already know where you'll be next year..."

Bailey looked up again and laughed. "As if! We only have a year left. We've come way too far to slack off now. Besides, we'll have light loads these last two semesters that should make it easier to keep our 4.0s."

Cody looked up again too and grinned. "Speaking of light semesters, how do yours look next year, Zack?"

Zack rolled his eyes again, fished a dollar out of his pocket and threw it at his brother. "Fourteen hours a semester, so I guess you won the bet. Don't spend it all in one place, Randolph..."

Cody just kept grinning. "I won't, Mortimer..."

**(AN: That was just a reference to the movie _Trading Places_. If you haven't seen it, I highly recommend it. It has Dan Aykroyd and Eddie Murphy in it back when both actually made funny movies.)**

Maya just laughed at the twins' antics. "Anyways, speaking of money, I happened to come into some today. I say we go out and have a welcome home dinner for Zack, and I'm buying!"

So, that's what they did - after Cody and Bailey finally found the article they were looking for. But by ten o'clock that night, Zack was practically dragging. When Maya suggested they all go to a late movie, he begged off.

"Sorry, Babe. Considering my body still thinks its four in the morning and add in that I flew for over seven hours today, I can barely keep my eyes open right now..."

She winced. "Sorry about that...I should have realized how exhausted you'd be..." She smiled. "But its okay, Babe. I can't wait to go to bed and finally have you there next to me again. Besides, we have the rest of the week to spend together..."

And they did. While Cody and Bailey had to work through Thursday before getting Friday off for the holiday, Zack and Maya had the rest of the week to make up for lost time. They went to a Sox game and did all kinds of other things that they had missed in getting to do together during the past six weeks. Finally, Friday arrived, and as it was the actual 4th of July, and everyone was looking forward to the city celebration of the holiday.

_Dowtown Boston_

After heading down to the riverfront bright and early that morning and securing everyone's spots for the Boston Pops concert/fireworks spectacular later that night, Cody and Bailey had time to enjoy all the historic city and local neighborhood activities. They went and watched the re-enactments of the Boston Massacre, the Boston Tea Party, and the Batttles of Bunker Hill and Lexington. As they were coming back from the last one, they found themselves walking through one of the numerous street festivals. And as they did, they both saw a booth that Cody couldn't resist stopping at.

"Sweetie, you don't have to do this..."

Cody grinned though. "I know, but I want to. I want to see if me working out for the past few years will make any difference from the last time I tried this..."

Picking up the large mallet, he swung it as hard as he could. And to his relief and Bailey's delight, they both heard the bell ring. Soon after, they continued walking down the street - Bailey holding one of her Cody Bear's hands in one of hers as she carried her new miniature Cody Bear in her other hand. And as they did, Cody turned to her and smiled.

"You know what we'll be doing one year from today?"

Bailey teased him. "Call it a guess, but I'm going to assume that we'll be celebrating the 4th of July..."

Cody shook his head. "That's not what I had in mind. Yeah, we'll be doing that too, but we'll have to call it a night pretty early next year. Early that next morning, we'll all be hopping a plane and heading out to Hawaii for our wedding..."

She smiled at him. "I know. Can you believe its only a year away now? I'm only a year away from finally being Mrs. Martin..."

He smiled back at her. "I can't wait until you are. More than that though, we're a year away from a lot of things. This time next year, we'll be college graduates, be getting ready to start medical school, and be living back in Boston full time - hopefully about to move into a new place close to school. Bails, this next year might be the biggest one of our lives so far..."

"You're absolutely right. We've got a lot about to happen for us, but above all, I can't wait for our..."

But before Bailey could finish what she was going to day, they both heard someone shouting their names.

"Cody! Bailey!"

Both paused and began looking around to see if they could find who was seeking them out. At first, they thought it was London looking for them again for something related to the wedding. Or maybe it was Zack and Maya finally up for the day and meeting them a little earlier than planned. Unfortunately for them, it wasn't either. Instead, they saw a blast from the past walking towards them with a huge smile on her face. And when she finally got right up to them, both of them sighed at the exact same time.

"Barbara...Its you..."

But when she saw the expressions on their faces, she sighed too. "I'm guessing you two never thought you'd ever see me again, huh?"

Cody wanted to say that it didn't look like they were going to be that lucky, but he managed to hold his tongue. So, he just decided to be polite.

"Actually, after the way you left Yale, no, I really didn't think we'd ever cross paths ever again..."

Barbara winced. "Yeah, I want to apologize again for that. I wasn't in a very good state of mind then, but that's still no excuse for what I had planned to do."

Bailey bit her tongue too and tried to be polite too. "Well, that was a long time ago. We moved on from it and haven't given it or you much thought since you left. Besides, we both knew your plan never would have worked anyways..."

"So do I now. Anyways, I just hope I didn't leave you in a lurch, Bailey. I'm sure the university forced someone else on you as a new roommate, and I want to apologize if that caused you any problems."

"Actually, that is one thing that you have no need to apologize for. Sure, Yale did assign me a new roommate, but it couldn't have worked out any better. Gertie's become a true friend of ours, and she and Tapeworm will have been dating for two years this Halloween." Bailey couldn't help herself, and she did shoot a dig at Barbara. "So, all things considered, you moving out was the best thing that could have happened for everybody..."

Barbara could only nod when she heard that. "Well, I'm glad that it was..."

Cody paused and almost began panicking when a horrid thought crept into his mind. "Wait a minute! Are you living here in Boston again?"

She shook her head. "No, I'm not. I'm just back visiting my folks for the 4th of July. Actually, I live out in Palo Alto, California now and attend Stanford. I figured the west coast was as far away as I could get, and I was able to get a fresh start there. I started school there the spring semester after I left Yale, and I really like it out there..." Barbara paused and smiled. "And...well, I think I might have found my own guy who looks at me the same way you look at Bailey. I'm not 100% positive yet, but I think it might be the real deal..."

Inwardly, Bailey sighed in relief as she thought that might mean they'd never have to deal with her again. "Well, we're certainly glad to hear that, and we're happy for you..."

"Thank you. What about you two? I assume you're both about to graduate in May."

"Yeah, we will. We've already been accepted to medical school at..." Bailey paused again as she was still very hesitant to say exactly where they would be going.

But Barbara was a step ahead of her. "I understand you not wanting to tell me. Once bitten, twice shy and all of that. But I'm glad you've both gotten what you worked so hard for. I..." She paused as she noticed the ring on Bailey's finger and smiled. "I see even though you said you didn't need a ring to know you were going to spend the rest of your life with Cody that you're wearing one now. Am I correct in assuming you two are now engaged?"

Cody nodded. "Yeah, we are. We're getting married next summer after graduation."

She smiled again. "Well, congratulations on that as well." She laughed. "I won't keep my eye out for an invitation though."

"Good, because no offense, one won't be forthcoming."

"I understand. While it would be nice if we could be friends again, my therapist told me that if I ever did run into you guys again that I shouldn't expect it. And if the situations were reversed, I would feel the exact same way that I imagine you two do right now."

"Yeah...well."

"Anyways, I'm sure I've taken up more than enough of your time. I happened to see you two walking down the street and just wanted to say hello to you both. And again, congratulations again on all of your accomplishments. I sincerely wish you both the very best in your future together."

And just like that, Barbara turned around and disappeared into the crowd. Once he was sure she was gone, Cody just shook his head.

"Okay, that was extremely weird and totally unexpected..."

Bailey nodded. "Tell me about it. But, look on the bright side, at least she seems like she is in a much better place in her life now."

"I sure hope so, but she did almost have us fooled once before..."

"True. But, she has no idea where were headed to medical school, and I seriously doubt she'll try to crash our wedding. I mean, she doesn't even know where it will be, and the announcements won't mention it either. And to be honest, I had pretty much forgotten that she even existed until we just saw her right then."

"Same here, Sweetie. I'm just glad this is a chapter in our lives that it looks like we can close, lock and throw away the key..." He paused, squeezed her hand and sighed. "Hopefully, that's twice we've been able to do that. Bails, why do we have the worst time dealing with our old middle school exes? I mean, seriously. Does anyone else have these kind of problems like we do?"

Bailey shrugged. "I don't know, Cody. But hopefully, we've seen the last of the both of them. I mean, after Amy's set up last Christmas, Moose has avoided us like the plague every single time we've been back in Kettlecorn."

"Remind me to thank her again for that the next time I see her..." Cody began laughing. "All I know is that someone somewhere was looking out for us. Can you imagine what would have happened if we had ended up going to Stanford and ran into her out there after we had already begun medical school?"

Bailey shuddered. "I'd rather not..."

_Logan International Airport_

Everyone enjoyed the 4th of July festivities that evening, and used the following Saturday as day to rest up from it. Unfortunately, for Zack and Maya, that Saturday was Zack's last full day in Boston before he had to head back to the ship. Both of them agreed that Zack's short visit back to Boston had went by way too quickly, and both were dreading Sunday. That afternoon, he would have to catch a plane and fly back to Europe so he could meet back up with the boat on Monday morning. So, that morning, he had a goodbye brunch with everyone where he could make his farewells before Maya was going to ride over to the airport with him to see him off.

Carey just shook her head and sighed. "I know I've said it before, but I'm really going to like it so much better next year when both of my boys are here in town at the same time..."

Zack rolled his eyes. "Mom...I'll be back for good on August 20th. That's only six more weeks. And then you'll have us both here in Boston again."

Cody rubbed the back of his head. "Yeah, but only for two days. The 15th is our last day of work, and we're moving back to New Haven on the 22nd."

Carey sighed again. "See what I mean? Its like I can't have you both here at the same time. When Zack gets back, I'm going to lose Cody..." She shook her head. "At least I'll have you both here for a couple of days until Cody and Bailey come back for Thanksgiving. That's why I'll like it much better this time next year."

Zack laughed. "Oh, I don't know about all of that, Mom. This time next year, you'll be a basket case as your other baby boy will be less than a week away from getting married..."

His mother just glared at him, but he shrugged. "Well, you know its true..."

Soon enough though, Zack had to get moving along or he would miss his flight. So, after grabbing his bag, he and Maya headed off towards the nearby subway station to begin their trip to the airport. And after a short ride over to Logan, Zack waited in line to check his bag and get his boarding pass. Once he did, he and Maya walked over to a Starbucks just outside of the security check. And after they both got something to drink, they sat down at a table and talked.

"Now, if that guy gives you any more problems while I'm gone, you'll let me know, right?"

She smiled. "I will, but I can take care of myself, Zack. Remember, while you are a green belt, I am too. I may be small, but I can pack quite the punch."

"Oh, you don't have to tell me that. I've seen you break boards before." He paused and laughed. "Plus, if he does do something stupid, all you would have to do is just go for his knee..."

She laughed too. "That's very true, but I'll hold off on that unless I have to. You remember what our sensai keeps telling us - this is only to defend ourselves, not to attack others."

"I know, but he also tells us to know our opponent and his weaknesses. Just making sure you remembered that..."

Maya smiled. "I know..."

"So, other than that, how have things really been for you this summer? Has living with Cody and Bailey driven you insane yet?"

Maya smiled again. "Nah. They've actually been pretty great roommates. I mean, not only have they been tutoring me, but with Cody's cooking, I've never eaten so well. In fact, on the days I get home early, he's started teaching me how to cook some things right along side Bailey..." She teased him. "He even said I mastered how to make a lemon tart a lot quicker than you did..."

Zack laughed. "Good to know. Well, I won't complain if he teaches you how to fix a few things..." He grinned. "See if he'll teach you how to make his home made calzones..."

"I'll think about it..."

"Works for me. So, have I missed any good hotel hijinks while I've been gone?"

"Well, there was one thing I wish you had been here for..."

"What's that?"

She smiled. "Well, did you know that Cody and Bailey both have Forever Onesies?"

He just gave her a look. "Please tell me you're joking..."

Maya laughed. "I wish I was. Anyways, one day while they were wearing them, I might have called London down to the suite. And when she saw them wearing those hideous things..."

Zack busted out laughing. "I can only imagine it was an epic meltdown. Please tell me you recorded it on your phone!"

"I wish I had, but I was laughing so hard I that it slipped my mind..."

"Well, I guess living there without out me hasn't totally sucked then..."

"It has, but it could have been worse. I an enjoying have a clean bathroom and guaranteed hot water every morning. That's been really nice. But, it would just be a lot nicer if you were there too."

He smiled. "I will be in six weeks. Just remember, the next time I come home, it will be for good."

"I know. I'm sure that thought will be what gets me through these next six weeks."

"Same here. Its like me coming home this time was halftime. I just have to finish out the second half without falling overboard..."

Maya laughed. "You better. Where is the ship going next anyways?"

"Well, I'm meeting the ship again in Portugal. And then, we're heading up to the British Isles before coming back across the Atlantic back towards South America and the Panama Canal. Actually, by the time its time for me to come home for good, I think we're supposed to be in San Diego. So, in a couple of weeks, we may have problems getting a cell phone signal again while we're crossing the ocean..."

She shook her head. "Such a rough life you're leading..."

Zack laughed. "Actually, it is. You have any idea what tomorrow is going to be like for me?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, there are no direct flights this afternoon from Boston to Lisbon. There was one at eight o'clock this morning, but I wanted to spend more time with you. So, the latest flight I could get, I had to pick a layover airport in either Toronto or Paris or Rome. Since I figured it would be a good idea for me to be able to read the signs and be able to understand when my flight was called, I'm connecting through Toronto. I know I'll be flying west before heading back east, but I figured that would be easiest. So, by the time I get to Lisbon, it will be a little after 6:00 AM tomorrow morning local time. Just enough time for me to get a cab to the ship, grab a shower and begin my day. Fortunately, one of the crew on the boat speaks Portuguese, and he wrote down the phrases I'll need to use once I land there."

Maya cringed. "Are you serious? That doesn't sound like any fun at at all!"

Zack shrugged. "Tell me about it. I guess I'll try to sleep on the plane. And I'll send you a text message when I land to let you know that I did safely. I would call, but 6 AM there will be 1 AM here..."

"I don't care. Call me anyways, I'll stay up and wait."

"If you're sure, but I know you begin your second class in the morning..."

"I'll take a nap this afternoon to make up for it!"

He smiled. "Okay then. Well, I hope you understand if I don't call you once I get off work tomorrow night. I'm sure I'm going to crash as soon as I get back to my cabin."

She smiled back at him. "I wouldn't blame you if you did. I'd probably do the exact same thing..."

Zack checked his watch and realized he needed to get in the line for security soon. But there was one more important thing he needed to talk to Maya about before he left. So, he took a deep breath so he could build up the courage he needed to say what he wanted to say next. Taking her hand in his, he just went for it. "Maya, I'm going to miss you so much these next six weeks."

Maya squeezed his hand and smiled at him. "I'm going to miss you too, Zack."

"And while I'm gone, there's something I want you to think about and consider..."

"What's that?"

Zack took another deep breath. "Well, you've said you've enjoyed staying at the Tipton this summer. What would you think of staying there full time even once school starts back?"

Maya's eyes went wide in surprise. "Zack, what are you talking about?"

Zack smiled at her. "Maya...I'm asking you to move in with me...permanently."

___To be Continued..._


	7. Coming to a Boil

_Episode 7_

_"Coming to a Boil"_

_I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did._

_Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them._

_Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves._

_And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so..._

_Logan International Airport_

Maya was caught so completely off guard by what Zack had just asked her that she could only just sit there in her chair as if she was frozen. At that moment, she could have been knocked over with a feather, but she could see Zack was still smiling at her and looking at her expectantly. But at that moment, she wouldn't have been able to tell him anything. Zack asking her to stay at the Tipton with him and not move back to her dorm when the fall semester began had been the last thing she could have imagined him saying right then. It was such a shock to her system that she was rendered completely speechless. Not that it mattered though because her mind was spinning in a thousand different directions. So, even if she could have spoken, she had no idea what would have come out of her mouth right then.

For his part, Zack couldn't help but to find humorous the sight of Maya sitting there with her eyes wide and her mouth hanging open in shock. But he realized the seriousness of the moment and resisted the urge to laugh. He knew he had just dropped a bomb on her and wanted to give her enough time to recover from it. Unfortunately, time was not something he had an abundance of right then as he really needed to get moving towards his gate before long. So, Zack was forced to break the silence and try to get their conversation moving again.

"So, what do you think, Maya? How does moving in with me full time sound to you?"

She just kept looking at him for a few more minutes before she was finally able to form coherent thoughts and then regain her ability to speak. "Zack? Are you serious?"

He just shrugged at her. "Sure, why not? I mean...you've said you've enjoyed living at the Tipton this summer, and I assume you've been able to prove to yourself that you can catch the subway and still make it to your early morning classes, right?"

"Well, yeah...but..." She began rubbing her eyes trying to figure out what she wanted to say.

Zack paused as his confidence began to wane. Maybe this hadn't been such a good idea after all. "Are you trying to tell me that you don't want to?"

Maya shook her head very rapidly. "No, I never said that! Its just that I never expected you to ask me this!" She paused herself. "Well, I had hoped eventually you would, but I just didn't see it coming at this particular moment! But, Zack...I have to ask. What brought this on?"

He smiled. "Well, I was talking to Kirby a couple of weeks ago, and he was teasing me that it looked like Cody wasn't the only Martin twin that was in a lasting, committed relationship. He even mentioned that he wouldn't be surprised if he was invited to another wedding in the near future..." Zack held up his hand to stop her from responding to that. "Now, I told him we weren't anywhere near ready for that stage in our relationship yet, but then he asked me a simple question. When I think about my future, are you right there with me? Are you a major part of it? And Maya, I didn't even have to think about it as I already knew the answers to those questions. The answer to both was a resounding 'Yes'. I want and fully expect us to have a long future together..."

She took a deep breath to collect her thoughts. "So do I, Zack, but...I mean...all things considered, we haven't been back together all that long - barely a little over a year now..."

"Fourteen months to be exact. But that is a long time, Babe. A lot of other couples live together much earlier in their relationships than that."

Maya sighed. "But how many other couples have had to overcome my level of stupidity that we've had to deal with. Zack, I want us to have a long future with each other too, but I don't want us to do something to rush it too far too fast. Us living together is something I want - when the time is right."

Zack was confused. "But I don't understand. Pretty much all last semester, we spent nearly every weekend together..."

Maya smiled at him. "Yeah, we did. But spending weekends together isn't the same as living with each other all the time. Then, It would be 24/7. There's a huge difference in that and weekends. And with me having my dorm room, there was someplace for us to go to our separate places to cool off if we had a fight. If I give it up, we don't..."

"But we've never had a fight where we've had to separate and cool off..."

"I know. And for that I'm grateful. But I'm not naive to think that it will never happen. Zack, like I said, I do fully plan on us living together full time at some point, but I want to make sure we do it when the time is right. We should really think about this a lot more before we rush into it..."

He shook his head. "But I have, Maya! Believe me, I've spent the past couple of weeks thinking about this nonstop in my free time and even some of the time when I should have been working. I pretty much thought of it my entire flight back to Boston too, and after being back here with you this week, I'm even more convinced than ever that its what I want. Look, I know the idea is kind of scary, but I'm ready to face it head on." He smiled at her again. "I just need to know if you are too..."

She rubbed her eyes before letting out a laugh. "Zack, while you might have had a couple of weeks to think about it, I've only had a couple of minutes! I'm going to need a lot longer than that to give this idea every thought and consideration that it deserves..." She smiled at him again. "I'm not saying 'No' right now, but would you mind if I took some time to really consider this?"

"Of course not." He sighed and felt like kicking himself. "I guess I should have foreseen that you would want some time, huh?"

"Hey, don't take this as a bad thing. I just want a chance to think about it for a little while like you have." Maya grinned at him. "Besides, I think this truly shows just how much we've really grown up. Four years ago, the Zack I knew then would have run the other direction when Kirby mentioned something like that to you. In fact, I'm willing to bet there would have been in hole in a wall shaped like you somewhere. And there is no way he would have been so gung ho about doing it."

He had to nod. "I guess that's true..."

"Well, three years ago, the Maya then made a hasty decision without thinking about the consequences of her actions, and she ended up doing something she really regretting. Now, I like to think the older version of her is wise enough now to do just that. She wants to to think about the consequences of this and make sure we don't do something that we will end up regretting. Zack, our relationship is way too important to me to risk doing something stupid with it again. Can you understand that?"

Zack nodded again. "When you put it like that, I guess I can..."

"Good." She smiled again. "But I hope you know that no matter what I decide to do here, it doesn't change how I feel about you in the least. Zack, I loved you then, I love you now and I'm going to love you for a long, long time."

"I know. I feel the same way about you, Maya. That's how I know I'm ready to do this."

"Tell you what. When you return to Boston in six weeks, I promise I will have an answer for you. Right now, that is the best I can do."

He smiled. "Well, I guess I can handle that. But if I may, can I request one thing?"

"Anything. Just name it."

"When I do propose to you one day...and I fully plan on doing that, can you promise me that you'll give me an answer then in a time frame shorter than six weeks?"

Maya laughed. "I think I can safely promise you that..."

Zack was about to say something when the alarm on his cell phone began beeping. He had programmed it to let him know the last possible time he could get in line to head through security and still be able to catch his flight. Pulling his phone out of his pocket, he turned it off and sighed. "That's my cue, Babe. I need to get moving through security and on to my gate or I'll miss my flight."

She nodded and sighed. "I know this moment would come, but it honestly wouldn't hurt my feelings if you did miss your flight. But, I know you need to be getting back, so come on, I'll walk with you as far as I can go."

And while Zack waited through the long line, Maya stood next to him the entire time. When there was only a handful of people in front of him, Maya sighed again. "I guess this is my cue then. Zack, I'm going to miss you so much."

"Not as much as I'll miss you. Now, you take care of yourself for me."

"I will if you do the same."

"I promise. And don't let that Ryan guy give you a hard time anymore. Remember what I told you."

She leaned in and gave him as passionate of a kiss as she could. "I will. I love you."

"Love you too. Just keep remembering that, and the next time you'll see me, I'll be home for good."

"I know." She swallowed down her emotions. "Now, go on. Get out of here. I'm willing to let the ship have you for six more weeks but not one minute longer. So, the sooner you go, the sooner I'll get you back..."

_Zack and Cody's Suite_

Maya could only stand there as she watched Zack go through security. Once he was done with that, he turned around and they both waved goodbye to each other and just looked at each other for a few moments. But way too soon, he to make his way to his gate. Maya stood there and just watched him disappear into the masses of people heading for their own flights. But not being ready to leave just yet, Maya went to the airport's observation deck and sat there until she saw his plane take off. And once she saw that it had safely, she finally left the airport and headed back to the hotel. When she opened the door to the suite again, she saw Bailey sitting on the couch watching TV by herself. And when Bailey looked up, she could see fresh tears still on Maya's cheeks.

"You okay?"

Maya could only shrug. "About as well as can be expected I guess. I miss him already..."

Bailey nodded in sympathy. "I can certainly understand that. When you love your feller, you hate to be away from them for any amount of time."

She wiped the tears from her face. "Yeah. Speaking of yours, where's Cody?"

"Oh, he went downstairs to hit the gym to get his workout in. We were watching a movie and were about to watch the one coming on after it. But when it came on, we saw it was _Groundhog Day_. While I love the movie myself, Cody doesn't care for it at all..."

Maya couldn't help but frown. "Why not? Its a great movie..."

Bailey paused as she remembered Cody telling her that the movie reminded him way too much of his International Dateline ordeal, and it hit way too close to home for him. However, she didn't think Maya was in any mood to try to explain that to her right then and there. "He...ummm...has his reasons."

"Okay..." Maya just shrugged before sitting down on the couch next to Bailey. "Maybe that's a good thing after all. Bailey, can I talk to you about something? You know, woman to woman?"

She nodded. "Yeah, sure. What's on your mind?"

"Well, I know you and Cody will officially be roommates this year at Yale, and I know you two have lived together here the past few summers. I was wondering - has that changed your relationship with each other at all?"

Bailey just looked at her. "You mean as in us actually living together?" After Maya nodded, Bailey answered her. "I don't think so. Well, not really. Naturally, it does change things some, but not in anyways that really matter. Why do you ask?"

"Because before Zack left to catch his plane, he asked me to continue living here next semester and not return back to my dorm. He wants us to live together now full time..."

Bailey just looked at her in surprise. "Really? Zack asked you that?"

"Yeah, he did..."

"Wow...he's grown up even more than I thought he had..." She shook her head. "Sorry, that's not really relevant to this conversation. Anyways, what did you tell him?"

Maya shrugged. "I told him I needed some time to think about it. After doing some rash the last time, I've learned my lesson to think through decisions now. I want to make sure if I do this that it won't come back to haunt us later on."

"Well, I think that is a very reasonable and mature thing to do. Now, let me back up a minute to your earlier question on whether or not Cody and I living together has changed our relationship. From my personal experience, I absolutely love living with Cody. I love that he's the last thing I see before I go to sleep and the first sight I have when I wake up. But I also thing we're lucky in that we have such a high level of comfort with each other. I mean, you saw that a couple of weeks ago yourself..." She paused. "...even if London didn't care for our outfits. Anyways, you saw that he was watching TV while I was reading a book. We're beyond that stage of wondering if we have to keep an ongoing conversation or worrying about keeping the other entertained. As long as the other is nearby, that's good enough for us. Just being in the other's presence is a comfort to us, but it does help that we have so much in common. We do enjoy the same books, television shows, activities and things like that. But I think that can all be traced back to the fact that we were friends before we were a couple..."

"Yeah, I've noticed that..."

Bailey smiled. "Well, we've known each other so long now that we practically know everything about the other. Sure, there are little things we keep learning, but besides that, we know each other almost as well as we know ourselves. And not to toot our horns or anything, I really think Cody and I now have the ability to really communicate with each other without having to say a word. We can see the expressions on each other's faces and know what the other is thinking. We know how the other will react to a situation. And we know what the other likes and dislikes. I know we don't have some strange fruit, but sometimes, its as if we can actually read the other's mind now.."

"I've noticed that too. Sometimes, I think I've seen you two carry on an entire conversation without a single word being spoken out loud..."

"Well, that comes with time..." Bailey smiled again. "Besides, I am marrying him in a year. So, I think its a good thing that we lived together first to know that we could successfully co-habituate with each other."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I mean we already know each other's quirks, habits, routines, etc. You have to understand that living together will only magnify them. Being with Cody 24/7 could have made his more irritating to me or mine more irritating to him. But that hasn't happened. We've had time to let ourselves adjust and get used to them." She laughed. "Trust me..after enough time, what you think would initially drive you up the wall actually becomes quite endearing to you. For example, Cody has this meticulous way that he eats. At first, I found it very unusual, but it really didn't bother me. Over time, I began not to notice it as much. But now, I do again, but I see it as part of what makes Cody who he is, and I embrace it."

Maya nodded. "I can understand than. Heaven knows Zack has several quirks like that himself, but they don't really bother me either." She paused. "And I think Zack and I could live together just fine, but what happens if we have a fight? We would both be under the same roof with no place for us to go cool off..."

Bailey laughed. "Oh, fights are going to happen. Especially with two strong willed people. No two people are ever going to agree on everything. What you have to do is learn to pick your battles and know when to compromise..."

"I guess so..." She paused and shook her head. "But if I did agree to do this, I can see another issue we would have that would just be waiting to come up..."

"What's that?"

Maya paused trying to figure out how to bring up the subject she wanted discuss. "Look, Bailey...I don't want to upset or embarrass you, but Zack's told me that you and Cody have..." She paused again to figure out how to word it. "...taken a step in your relationship that we haven't yet..."

Bailey looked at her kind of funny. "Taken a step..." She stopped as it suddenly dawned on her what Maya was talking about. Her eyes went wide, and she began freaking out. "He told you that? Zack promised us that he wouldn't mention it to anyone!"

Maya tried to calm her down. "I know, he told me that too. But don't blame him too much as I kind of forced him to tell me. You see, this past Valentine's Day, it started snowing on us pretty heavily, and I guess without thinking, he mentioned that big snow storms like that can actually be romantic. When I asked him what he meant by that, he tried to clam up. But I wouldn't let him and made me tell him. I used the same method you always use on Cody - you know, kiss them and leave them helpless to say no..."

"Still!" Bailey began rubbing her eyes as another thought entered her mind. She looked up at Maya. "That's why you were looking at us funny when we met in New Haven on spring break!"

"Yeah, but to be fair, it was the first time I had seen you two since I found out..."

"Great..." Bailey sighed. "Look, I promise you that Cody and I have never...you know...while you've been here in the suite with us. We wouldn't do that!"

Maya laughed. "I wouldn't care if you did. I mean, its obvious how much you two love each other, and its like you said, you two will be getting married in a year. Don't worry about it..." She paused before laughing again. "Though, now that I think about it, when you two told Carey you had a surprise for her, she was actually closer in her first guess than she knows..."

Bailey just glared at her. "That's not really funny..."

"Sorry..." She stopped laughing and collected herself. "My point is that you two have made the next step in your relationship with each other that Zack and I haven't yet. And its not like I haven't thought about because, trust me, I have. But every time I do, there are just so many questions. Like...will it ruin our relationship? Will it make things awkward between us? And even if it doesn't, when would be the right time to take that step? And how will I know if I'm ready when the time is right?"

Bailey tried to calm herself down as well. And once she did, she nodded. "Trust me, I know those questions all too well as I had them too. So did Cody. And I'm willing to bet Zack probably has them too. Unfortunately or rather fortunately in our case, Cody and I found ourselves in a situation where those questions didn't matter any more..."

"Because you were trapped in that cabin and thought you might die?"

"Exactly. We were faced with the prospect of not surviving that night. And considering that we didn't know if we would even be alive the next day, none of our worries or concerns mattered any more at that moment. If I was going to die, I wanted to spend the last remaining time I had showing the man I love just how much I truly do love him..."

Maya shook her head. "I can't imagine being in a situation like that or how I would react..."

Bailey had to laugh. "Yeah, well, I wouldn't recommend putting yourself in a life or death situation like that just to find out. Cody and I got lucky that we were able to walk away from that whole ordeal with our lives."

"Understandable." She paused. "Again, I don't mean to get too personal here, but that next day when you realized you were going to make it, did you have any regrets about what you had done?"

Bailey could help but to smile. "Only that we had waited so long. Maya, there's no feeling in the world like knowing how much you desire your feller and seeing in his eyes that he desires you just as much. Ever since then, I feel shivers down my spine when I see him give me that same look..." She giggled. "And trust me, he gives me that look a lot!"

Maya's eyes went wide. "Bailey! Too much information!"

"Sorry. I can't help it though. I don't think I'm all that special looks wise, but I can see in his eyes that he thinks I'm the most beautiful, sexiest woman in the world. And I feel the same way about him...well, exchange handsome for beautiful. But my point is that its only added to our relationship. Even though we might not know exactly what we're doing all the time, it doesn't matter to us at all. As long as we are enjoying ourselves, that's all that matters to us..." She paused. "Of course, we did buy this book that..."

Maya held up her hands to interrupt Bailey again. "Okay, you can stop right there! I don't need to know any more details!"

Bailey blushed a little. "Sorry again. I guess I got kind of lost in the moment there. But, to be fair, its just those moments I have with Cody are my some of my happiest moments. When you get to show each other just how much you love each other, it really is a beautiful thing. To us, its the ultimate way for us to express to each other just how much the other means to us, and we love the fact that its something that we will only ever share with each other. Knowing that its just something between us just brings us all that much closer together..."

"That makes sense. I have a feeling it would be the same for us too..."

Bailey just gave her a look. "It would?"

Maya grinned. "Yeah, it would..." She paused. "Alright, Zack shared one of your secrets with me, so I'll share one of ours with you. Despite both of our dating histories, neither one of us taken that step before..."

That surprised Bailey. "Really?"

"Really. But Zack would not be happy if I let that fact get out. So, please, if you would, told tell Cody..."

"Why not?"

Maya laughed. "Zack's afraid he would catch nothing but pure hell from Cody. When those two were growing up, Zack always viewed himself as the more of the ladies man of the two, and he always liked to tease Cody about it. But it turns out that its not true. Cody got his first kiss before Zack did, and now this..."

Bailey laughed too. "I guess I can understand that, but I don't think Cody would do anything like that. We've tried very hard to keep the fact that we've even done that. With you know, the number of people who do know is now five..."

Maya paused. "Five? You two, Zack, and now me. Who is the fifth?"

Bailey sighed. "My Grammy. We never told her, but she seemed to figure it out on her own..."

"Wow..." She shook her head. "Anyways, lets get back on topic here. Since it would be a first for us too, that's why I'm still wondering how I'll know when the time is right..."

Bailey paused. "Well, you have to remember that when it happened to us, Cody and I had already been through a lot together. This happened the spring break of our sophomore years of college. By then, we had been back together a little over two years after our mutual periods of stupidity."

Maya sighed. "And Zack and I are still only a little over a year away from mine..."

"There's no defined time period no matter what some idiotic books like the Guyble or Girble may say. Its different for everyone and every couple. Everyone and every couple makes mistakes and some point. In the grand scheme of things, mistakes like what we all made aren't all that bad. Some mistakes are so massive that there are no coming back from. In our cases though, its more about what you learned from your mistakes. Cody and I learned to never take our relationship for granted. We learned that every relationship needs constant upkeep no matter how long its lasted. And we promised each other we would do a better job of always talking to the other and trying not to view everything as a competition with each other. We try to remember that we are on a team now, and the better one of us does, the better our team does. And we vowed if something was bothering either of us, we would sit down and discuss it with the other to find a solution to it..."

"Sounds like good lessons to learn."

"I think so too. And so far, its worked wonderfully for us. We've even made a pact with each other that we'll never go to bed angry at each other..." She paused and grinned again. "Besides, we've also learned that the real fun of arguing is making up with each other afterwards. Sometimes, I think we pick small fights with each other just so we can..." Bailey had a far away look in her eyes. "This one time, we picked a fight over who was better between Monet and Manet, and it lead to..."

Maya just shook her head again. "Bailey! Focus!"

Bailey blushed again. "Sorry again. Okay, lets get back on topic here. Maya, the only person who can tell you if you are ready or not for that next step...is you. I can't. Cody can't. And most importantly, Zack can't. Likewise, you can't tell him that he's ready for it either..."

Maya just nodded at that. "Yeah, you're right. Thanks, Bailey. You've definitely given me a lot to think about."

"Anytime."

And it was probably a good idea that their conversation came to a stopping point as less than thirty seconds later, Cody returned from the gym. And Maya could help but notice the look on Bailey's face as she drank in the sight of Cody's t-shirt stuck to his torso with sweat. Not only did Maya did think to herself that she might indeed have to borrow Zack's ear plugs that night, but she decided to make herself scarce from the suite for a little while. So, she told them she had some errands to run and would be back in a couple of hours. But the way they were looking at each other, she wasn't sure they had noticed.

And Maya saying she had errands to run wasn't a lie either. She really did need to make a trip to the BU bookstore and buy her new textbook and materials for her CAS PY 106 class that began the next morning. Fortunately though, it would follow the same schedule that her CAS PY 105 class had the first summer term, so she wouldn't have to get used to a new schedule. So, once she had been to the bookstore, she got back on the subway to head back to the Tipton. And as she sat there, she began to seriously think about what Zack had asked her as well as her little chat with Bailey. By the time she got back, Maya hadn't make any decisions yet, but the one thing she did know for sure was that it was going to be a long and interesting six weeks.

_The S.S. Tipton II_

Unfortunately for Zack, he had been 100% correct about how bad his return to the ship was going to suck. The day he flew back to Lisbon and rejoined the boat turned into one of the longest days of his life. By the time he arrived at the airport in Lisbon, he was already exhausted as he hadn't gotten as much sleep on the plane as he had hoped. While he waited for his bag to come down the baggage carousel, he did call Maya to let her know he had arrived safely. But he could tell she was half asleep and needed her rest for her class later that morning, so he didn't keep her on the phone too long. Once he finally got his bag, he was successful in getting a cab to the docks, and the cab driver did seem to understand his directions as he did make it back to the ship. But when he finally walked up the gang plank, he could only sigh knowing that a full day of work was staring him in the face. Fortunately, Zack managed to make his way through his entire shift with the help of large hourly doses of caffeine. And once he finished his shift, he decided to skip dinner and head straight to his cabin to crash. On the way there, he did call Maya again, but this time their roles were reversed as he was the one now half asleep, and she didn't keep him on the phone that long either. Once he got inside his room, he barely had time to bid Maya goodnight before he fell onto his bed and passed out.

After being back on deck for a week, Zack soon got back into the swing of things. It had taken his internal body clock that long to use to being back in Europe again. He was just grateful that the ship crossing the ocean again wouldn't throw it off like his plane trip had. Fortunately, the ship was headed up to the British Isles for a few days so he wouldn't have to worry about that again for a few days. And another added perk for him was that he wouldn't have to worry about the locals there speaking a language he wouldn't understand. While they were docked in Dover, Zack took advantage of it to continue with his assignments for BU. By the end of that first week back, he was completely caught up with his journal and had close to two dozen entries in his cuisine review notebook. By then, he thought he had finally re-acclimated to life back on the ship. In fact, by then, the only thing thing that was a downer to his mood, other than missing Maya of course, was how freaked out Kirby was getting.

"You can't be serious about this, Kirby..."

Kirby shook his head in a very somber manner. "I'm dead serious, Zack! The last place were stopping before crossing the Atlantic again is - ummm...Colby something or another..."

Zack sighed. "Cobh, Ireland..."

"Yeah, that's it! Anyways, that was the last port that the Titanic stopped at before it began crossing the Atlantic itself. And we both know what happened to it!"

Zack just shook his head. "Yeah, but we're not the Titanic! Kirby, there are a lot of reasons why nothing like that could happen to us..."

"Yeah? Like what?"

"Well, for one, this is 2014, not 1912. In over a hundred years, communication and ship building has gotten much, much better. This boat is more structurally sound and actually has enough lifeboats for everyone. Second, even if something did happen to the boat, help would be on the way to us instantly. And back in 1912, the airplane was only about ten years old. Nowadays, we have planes and helicopters that could be right here in less than 30 minutes. For another thing, we're not heading to New York. We're heading to Rio. We won't be in the North Atlantic for very long at all. Last but not least, this is mid July, not early April. I seriously doubt we'll encounter any icebergs..."

Kirby just looked at him in surprise. "How do you know all of that?"

Zack sighed again. "You have no idea how many times Maya has made me watch that stupid movie. I think people older than me must hate Leonardo DiCaprio as must as we hate Justin Bieber. And earlier this summer before I came on the boat, Cody and Bailey were watching this show on the History Channel about the Titanic, and Maya wanted to watch it with them. So, I had to watch it too..."

Kirby laughed. "Well, I'm glad she did. Speaking of Maya, did you do what you said you were going to do while you were back in Boston?"

"Yeah, I asked her to move in with me." He paused. "Of course, she asked me for time to think about it..."

"Well, that makes sense. You don't want to pressure her or anything..."

"I know. I just keep hoping she says yes though."

"So do I, Little Buddy. And when you see her again, tell her I said thanks for making you watch all that stuff..." Kirby paused. "But to be on the safe side, I'm going to start carrying my inflatable duck with me everywhere I go. At least Moseby isn't here to kill this one. I can't swim!"

"Well, something tells me you would have no trouble floating, Big Man..."

"Yeah, well, that does me no good. That would leave me a sitting duck for the sharks. I don't want them to do to me like Moseby did to my other duck! And I doubt my Kirbina could get there in time to save me..."

Zack shook his head again. "Kirby, ordinarily Maya is the one who teaches people how to swim, but you're stuck with me. Besides, it will give me a project to do in my free time for the next several weeks..." He paused and smiled. "And in some way, this will make me feel even closer to Maya."

"You're going to teach me how to swim?"

"Yeah, I am. I figure if you can teach Cody not to be so pathetic at football then anything is possible..."

_Boston University Fitness & Recreation Center_

While Zack now had Kirby as a student, Maya was still teaching her own swim lessons three days a week. And on Tuesdays and Thursdays, she was still helping Ryan rehab his knee. After his altercation with her and Zack on the Tuesday before the 4th of July, Ryan pretty much kept to himself during the sessions. And that was just fine with Maya. She liked it better when the only things they said to each other actually dealt with his rehab. She had enough on her mind without having to deal with his old obnoxious behavior.

As the next few weeks flew by, Maya was even more grateful for Cody and Bailey continuing to help her study. Physics 105 was bad enough, but now that she was dealing with new concepts like electromagnetics and nuclear forces in Physics 106, she felt completely lost everyday as she left class. Fortunately, her roommates were able to explain to her in layman's terms what was actually going on. And once they did, she just shook her head and said she wished they were her professors instead. Of course, she thought her fellow classmates could probably do without Cody's huge stack of note cards, but she wasn't about to complain. In fact, as the class continued on with her having an understanding of what was going on while the rest of the class was completely lost, Maya began thinking of some way to pay Cody and Bailey back for all the help they had given her over the summer. And that was especially so after she got her first test back and got an A on it. Coupling that with the fact that the next highest grade in the class was a C+, and Maya was flat out giddy.

All in all, while she was missing Zack something fierce, Maya couldn't complain about how the rest of her summer was going. Of course, she was still counting down the days until he would be home. A couple of weeks later, she had had her second exam in 106 and actually felt pretty confident about it. So, as she prepared for Ryan's rehab that afternoon, she actually found herself whistling to herself as she looked over his file. She thought he might soon be in good spirits too as her boss agreed with Maya's assessment that he no longer needed his crutches or aquatic therapy any longer. So, once his session was over that afternoon, she delivered the good news to him.

"Ryan, I think I have the news you've been waiting for for a long time. I believe and my boss agrees that you can stop using your crutches now. And as far as we can tell, you are no longer in need of any further aquatic therapy. As long as you keep wearing a knee brace and complete your other weekly therapy sessions, you should be ready for when the next hockey season begins..."

He just nodded his head. "Cool..."

His lack of a reaction to that surprised Maya. "I guess I just figured you'd be more enthusiastic about it..."

He just looked at her. "Oh, I am. Especially the part where I don't have to work with you again. I'll be glad not to see you everyday and be constantly reminded of the way you swindled and tricked me!"

Maya couldn't help but laugh. "Swindled and tricked you? I did no such thing! We made a bet that you lost. No need to be a sore loser, but if you are going to be one, don't expect me to care..."

Ryan glared at her. "You should care! How can you live yourself knowing you set me up and stole money away from me? You should me ashamed of yourself, but I bet you and your little wimp probably just keep laughing at pulling one over on me, don't you?"

She couldn't believe what she was hearing. "We didn't set you to do anything! You're the one who pushed the issue and wouldn't believe I had a boyfriend. And as I recall, it was you who proposed the bet in the first place. And I didn't force you to agree to the $500 part of it. So, again...quit being such a sore loser!"

He walked over to her and tried to tower over her. "The only loser I saw in all of this was your boyfriend!" He paused and began laughing. "Well, I guess that makes you one too for actually dating him..."

That did it. Maya was now royally ticked off and just laughed in his face. "Whatever. I don't care what you think or say. You're just mad that I wouldn't give you the time of day. It gnaws at you that I would rather be with a real man who actually knows how to treat a lady rather that someone like you..." She shook her head. "Oh, believe me, I've heard all the stories about you, and I'm willing to..." she emphasized the next word. "..._bet _they're all true too."

Ryan was growing angrier by her attitude too. "None of those can be proven!" He leered at her. "Besides, it doesn't matter right now. Neither you're little boyfriend nor your stupid bodyguard is here to interfere. I want my money back!"

Maya smirked at him. "Too late. I already spent it all. But, thanks for the filets you bought us. They were quite tasty..."

"You either pay me back my money now or I'll find some other way to get it out of you..."

She laughed in his face again. "I'd like to see you try!"

He reached out and grabbed both of her wrists. "You just don't know when to shut up, do you? I'm going to teach you a lesson that you're never going to forget!"

Maya just glared at him. "This is your one and only warning! Let go of my wrists right now, or I'll be forced to defend myself!"

Ryan laughed. "Oh yeah? I'm sooooo scared. As if a little thing like you could do anything to a big guy like me..."

She gritted her teeth. "Last chance..."

He smirked. "Go ahead! Give me your best shot!"

And in a flash, Maya lifted her leg and delivered a lightning quick kick to the side of Ryan's injured knee. It was such a textbook kick that her sensai would have been proud. Almost instantly after her foot made contact, a loud crunching sound began echoing off the walls of the aquatic therapy area. Ryan was forced to let go of her wrists as they immediately went down to grab his knee. Unfortunately for him, he knee was in no condition right them to support his weight and he fell to floor, sobbing in pain.

"My knee! You're going to pay for this, you bitch! By the time I'm done with you, you're going to be expelled from school!"

A couple of minutes later, Maya's boss ran into the area after hearing a loud noise followed by Ryan's wails of agony. And when she saw Ryan on the floor withering in agony, she looked at Maya. "What happened in here?"

Before Maya could respond, Ryan yelled out. "That bitch kicked me in my bad knee! I was minding my own business and doing nothing when she attacked me! She's a psycho!"

Maya couldn't help but laugh. "Yeah, whatever..." She turned to her boss and smiled. "You can check the closed circuit camera footage and see for yourself what really happened. This poor excuse for a human being grabbed my wrists in some lame attempt to intimidate me. And then you'll hear me giving him two warnings to let go or I would defend myself. The university paid for my self defense classes after what Bruno tried to do last year. Well, Ryan didn't let go, so I did what I had to do. My sensai says to always know your enemy and hit them where it will incapacitate them the quickest."

Her boss just stood there not quite sure what to make of the scene she had walked in on. "Okay...well, why don't you go wait in my office, Maya? I'll call an ambulance for Mr. McDonald, and after they pick him up, I'll go review those tapes myself..."

A couple of hours later, Maya was still sitting in the office when her boss and an older man walked inside and closed the door behind them. And from the look on her boss's face, Maya could tell this whole situation was almost more than she could handle. And when she finally spoke, the exhaustion in her voice was evident.

"Well, I checked the tape, and it went down exactly as you told me it did, Maya. As you know, you have every right to file criminal charges and a complaint with the univeristy against Mr. McDonald, but this gentleman here would like to try to convince you not to do that. He's one of the big boosters of the university's hockey program..."

The man spoke up, and Maya could instantly tell by his very powerful and intimidating voice that he was used to getting whatever he wanted. "Miss Bennett, this is a very sticky situation we have here. If you go public, it would case much public humiliation for the university and the program. We'd be the laughing stock of all the local and national sports media. So, I'm hoping you and I can come to some sort of an agreement where what happened here today never leaves these walls..."

Maya paused to consider that. "Well, I might be willing to consider that, but I have some conditions that would have to be met first..."

"Name them."

"First, I refuse to work with him ever again in any capacity."

Her boss nodded. "Already done."

The booster spoke up too. "Agreed. Besides, I don't think he'll be needing any more physical therapy for a long, long time after what you did to him..."

Maya smiled to herself when she heard that. "Second. I want him to stay at least a thousand feet away from me and my boyfriend at all times. I know it won't be an official restraining order, but I think you know what I mean. And if Ryan decides to violate that, I'll be in the office of the Boston Globe within an hour with no prior notification to you...right after I stop by the campus police station."

The man just looked at her. "But he's in your physics class! Its too late for him to withdraw from it, and if he can't show up to the rest of the classes, he'll flunk it and be ineligible to play next year..."

Maya just shrugged. "Not my problem. I didn't start this..."

The booster bit his tongue to keep from saying something else. "Very well. Is there anything else?"

As she stopped to think about it some more, an idea began forming in her mind. An almost evil grin began to spread across her face. "Actually, I do have a couple of more simple requests that if you agree to, you'll have my silence..."

_The S.S. Tipton II_

The calendar had finally turned to August, and the ship had finished crossing the Atlantic safely without any sight of an iceberg. That was a huge weight off of Kirby's mind, though he now felt like he had a chance of surviving if they had hit one. For the past five weeks, Zack had been teaching him to swim for about an hour every evening with some degree of success. While Kirby would never qualify for the Olympics, he wouldn't drown now either. And for Zack, that had made the past five weeks not to seem to drag by so slowly. He still talked to Maya every day, but for the past week or so, she kept telling him that she had a big surprise for him. Despite his protests, she wouldn't tell him what it was only that he would get it when she next saw him again.

So with less than a week of his time on the ship left to go, Zack was ready for his summer to be over. And by then, the ship had already visited ports in Brazil, Suriname, Colombia, and Venezuela and passed through the Panama Canal. On the Friday before Zack was to fly home on the following Wednesday, the boat was docked in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. Zack had been trying to get a hold of Maya all day to find out how her physics final had gone that morning, but he hadn't had any luck in getting a hold of her. After leaving yet another voice, he shrugged and figured he'd try calling her again after dinner. So, he went looking for Kirby to see if he was ready to eat, and he found him up on the skydeck.

"You ready to go get some food, Big Man?"

Kirby shook his head. "No can do, Little Buddy. I have dinner plans with Bertha tonight. She has the night off..."

Zack shrugged again before sighing. "I guess I'm on my own then. Well, I only have a few more days of this left. I guess eating alone won't kill me..."

Kirby smiled. "Yeah, I guess you could eat alone...or maybe those guys would let you join them?" He pointed behind Zack.

And when he turned around to see who Kirby was pointing at, Zack's mouth fell open in shock. "Maya? Cody? Bailey? What are you guys doing here?"

___To be Continued..._

**AN: I was going to wait to post this until after the Belmont today to know if we were going to have a Triple Crown winner. Alas, that will not happen now. But don't feel too bad for I'll Have Another. He's about to begin the next part of his life as a stud. Sometimes, its good to be a horse lol**___  
_


	8. One Last Summer Hurrah

_Episode 8_

_"One Last Summer Hurrah"_

_I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did._

_Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them._

_Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves._

_And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so..._

_Puerto Vallarta, Mexico_

Zack just stood there on the skydeck in total and complete shock. Never in his wildest dreams would he have imagined turning around and seeing his girlfriend, his brother and his soon to be sister-in-law all standing there first smiling at him and then laughing at seeing the expression on his face. When Kirby had told him to turn around, Zack had thought he was going to see some of the other crew members or even worse, some passengers looking for him to do something for them. But seeing Maya, Cody and Bailey standing there completely blew him away as he had no idea they were coming or even how they got there.

"W...w...what are you guys doing here?"

Cody just shook his head and laughed. "What does it look like we're doing? We're here for a vacation!"

"But...but...today was supposed to be your last day of work."

Bailey grinned. "You're right. It was supposed to be...until Maya gave us an offer we couldn't refuse! When she asked if we wanted an all expense paid trip on the boat for a few days, there was no way we were going to turn it down..."

Zack turned to look at his girlfriend. "This was your idea?"

Maya just smiled at him. "Yes, it was. I figured after all we had been through the past three months that we deserved one last hurrah this summer before school starts back. Besides, if you'll remember, I told you I had a surprise for you the next time I saw you..." She laughed and hugged him. "Well...surprise! Here we are!"

Zack could only shake his head as his mind was trying to grasp the sudden appearance of Maya, Cody and Bailey. But the fact that he was now holding his girlfriend in his arms again did bring a smile to his face. "Not that I'm not happy to see you guys, but you could have told me you were coming! I could have met you guys at the airport or been down at the dock to meet you or..."

She pulled back and cut him off. "Oh, I know, but If I had told you, it wouldn't have been a surprise, now would it?"

"I guess not. So this is why I haven't been able to get a hold of you all day, isn't it?"

Maya grinned again. "Uh huh. As soon as my final was over about two o'clock this afternoon, the three of us headed for Logan where we caught our flight out. We just landed at an airport down here about an hour ago..."

Zack frowned. "You did?" He quickly did the math in his head. "If you guys left then and got here that quickly, you must have had a direct flight out. I didn't know the airport down here was big enough for direct flights from Boston..."

She just shook her head and laughed. "Well, that's probably because it isn't. The airport we flew into was pretty tiny."

He kept frowning. "I don't understand then. How did you guys get here so fast then? Did London fly you in on one of the private Tipton jets?"

Maya just smiled as she shook her head again. "Nope, not London. I had someone else who owed me a few favors let us use his private plane today..." Before Zack could ask her what she meant by that, she continued. "Now, I don't want to make a big deal about it, but it does seem that while having to deal with Ryan McDonald the summer was unpleasant, it had some very pleasant perks in the end..."

Zack just looked at her with confusion written all over his face. "Maya, you've completely lost me here. What are you talking about?"

Briefly, Maya filled him in on what had happened that fateful day at the fit&rec center and then how the booster had bought her silence including paying for the trip down for the three of them. And when she finished, she braced herself for what she expected Zack's reaction to be. Unfortunately, her expectations weren't too far off. His eyes went wide and a mask of anger fell over his face.

"He did what? That son of a..." He shook his head. "Maya, why didn't you tell me about this before? You told me you would tell me if he tried to bother you again!"

She tried to soothe him. "I know, but I didn't tell you because there was nothing you could have done about it. Zack, like I told you before - I can take care of myself, and I did. I did exactly what you told me to do - I took out his knee. And I knew you would worry and immediately hop the next flight back to Boston if had told you..."

"Of course I would have! I'd come back and finish the job on Ryan myself! I'd teach him a lesson he'd never forget and make him regret the day he ever met either one of us! Nobody treats you like that and gets away with it!"

Maya smiled at him. "I appreciate you saying that and even more for feeling that way. But I think Ryan's probably already regretting the day he met me. You see, my boss has been keeping me updated on his current medical status. Turns out, once they got him back into surgery, the doctors determined Ryan's knee was now so damaged that it will never be 100% ever again. In fact, its more than likely that he'll walk with a limp for the rest of his life. So, he has a permanent reminder that he should learn how to respect women. And with his knee shot, his hockey career is over..."

Zack still was incredulous. "He deserves a lot worse than that!"

She kept smiling. "You should have let me finish. Now, ordinarily, he would be eligible for a medical redshirt so he could finish out his education at BU, but with my condition that he stay at least a thousand feet away from me, he wasn't allowed to return back to our mutual physics class. And with it being too late to drop it, he's going to end up flunking it. Add that to the fact that it seems his GPA was already borderline as it was, BU will have no choice but to kick him out of school. So, Zack...he's getting all the punishment he deserves without me having to worry about you going to jail for you trying to defend my honor..."

Zack just looked at her and sighed. "Still..."

"No, I don't want you to worry about this. Its all over now, and I'm ready to forget about it myself. I want you to to try to forget about it too. I had considered not even telling you about it because I knew you would react this way. But I wanted to be honest with you about it because I don't want to keep any secrets from you. Look, I know you've just heard about this, and your emotions are still a little raw..."

"But I wasn't there to protect you!"

Maya just laughed. "Of course you were. Remember you are the one who told me how to deal with him if I had to. You did protect me by giving me the knowledge I needed to handle the situation myself..."

Zack shook his head and sighed again. "I guess...but if anything like this ever happens again, I expect you to tell me about it immediately!"

She grinned and kissed him. "I promise. But there is another sort of ironic twist to this story. The same booster who bought my silence is now trying to get Ryan into...get this...Beacon Hill Community College."

Zack shook his head. "He isn't good enough for that place!"

"Probably not, but it was that same booster that did agree to pay for the three of us to fly out here, for a cabin for me and a cabin for Cody and Bailey until we dock in San Diego, all inclusive passes on the boat and even some spending money. That's what I'm focusing on right now, and I figured this was a perfect way for me to show my thanks to Cody and Bailey for all their help this summer. If I got a 53 on my final today, I'll have A's in both of my physics classes this summer."

Zack couldn't help but smile. "Well, congratulations then on that. Beauty, brains, and a lethal right foot. I'd call that the total package."

She laughed. "Thanks...I think."

He laughed too. "Trust me, it was a compliment..." He turned to his brother. "Now, you...Broseph...how come you didn't tell me about this when I called you last week?"

Cody just held up his hands. "Hey! Maya asked us not to say anything. And after hearing about what she could do with one kick, I wasn't about to get on her bad side. I've spent enough time as a patient in a doctor's office and hospital in the past few years to last me for a long time..."

Zack nodded. "I can see that..." He paused and laughed. "How about that, Codester? My girlfriend can cripple a man..."

Cody nodded. "Like I said, I was very impressed when I heard it myself. I think this should be a lesson to the both of us to never get on our respective lady's bad sides. We both know they can inflict a lot of pain if they really want to. Maya can cripple someone by destroying their knee as well as other body parts I assume, and Bailey could hogtie someone in record time and then proceed to make them a eunuch with her bare hands..." He turned to Bailey and smiled. "And maybe I'm biased too, but I think my Boo Boo is the total package as well..."

Bailey smiled at him. "Thanks Cody Bear...I feel the same way about you."

Zack laughed. "You know...I am kind of surprised that you two actually came along. I figured you two would still be doing your school work for next semester..."

"Nah, we finished our research a couple of weeks ago and our outlines for our papers this morning. Just before we left to head to the airport, we e-mailed them to our faculty sponsor."

Bailey nodded and grinned. "Exactly! We wanted to have everything done before we left Boston so we can enjoy every minute here that we can."

Zack paused as a thought crossed his mind. "Wait a minute! You guys are here on a vacation. I have Sunday off, but I have to work a half day tomorrow and then all day Monday and Tuesday. What will you guys be doing while I do that?"

Cody laughed. "Like Bailey said, we're going to enjoy every minute we have as well as all of the perks of being back on a boat again. Since Moseby always said it was off limits to us on the old one, I think we're planning on hitting the ledo deck sometime while we're here..."

Maya smiled at Zack. "But we did figure you would go with us when we explored Cabo San Lucas on Sunday."

Zack sighed. "So...you guys will be be doing absolutely nothing while I'll actually be working? That doesn't sound like very much fun to me..."

Cody rolled his eyes. "I call it karma for all those times I was working hard gathering, laundering, folding and distributing towels while you were asleep over at the Easy Squeezie. I, for one, am looking forward to actually seeing you actually do some work on a ship for a change..."

Zack rolled his eyes too. "Yeah, yeah...Someone is still bitter about that."

Cody smirked at him. "Of course I am! If you hadn't stolen my student ID card, I never would have had to take that job in the first place! Besides, you can also consider this as your payback for not being able to keep your big mouth shut..."

"What are you talking about?"

Maya laughed and grabbed his hand. "I'll explain it to you later, Babe. But right now, why don't we keep catching up over dinner. I haven't had anything to eat since breakfast this morning except for an tiny bag of pretzels on the flight out. I'm starving!"

Zack shrugged. "Well, okay. And if that dude is picking up the tab, I say we hit up the Poseidon's Trident. Its basically the new version of the Coral Room."

Cody, Bailey, and Maya all looked at each other and nodded. "Sounds good to us."

As they began following Zack towards the elevator on the skydeck, Cody happened to glance over and see one of the ship's towel boys carrying a pile of towels across the deck. And on reflex, he just shuddered.

"Glad I never have to do that ever again..."

Bailey smiled at him. "True, but it would be nice if you still had your old uniform..." She winked at him. "I mean...you always did look so handsome in it..."

Cody just gave her a look. "Are you serious?"

She leaned in and kissed him. "Oh yeah..." She whispered in his ear. "...and sexy too."

He gulped. "I'll see Esteban first thing in the morning and find out where I can buy one!"

_Poseidon's Trident_

So, off to dinner they went. And due to Zack still being the highest ranking employee of London Inns on the boat, they were immediately seated at one of the best tables in the restaurant. (Of course, it didn't hurt that a lot of passengers were off the boat and dining out in Puerto Vallarta). And there were other perks the group got because Zack was sitting at their table. Wanting to impress him, the staff did everything to make all of their dining experiences as enjoyable as possible. Everyone ordered the fresh seafood, and it was completely delicious. By the time they finished with their entrees, everyone was stuffed, but since everything was being paid for by someone else, they all still ordered dessert. And as they sat there waiting for it to be served to them, Maya turned to Zack.

"I just remembered I do have one more surprise for you..."

"Yeah, what's that?" He laughed. "Its going to have to be pretty big to top your first one..."

Maya winked at him. "I'll let you be the judge of that..." She reached into her purse and pulled out an envelope. "This came for you in the mail a few days ago..."

Zack took it and noticed it it was a letter addressed to him from the BU School of Management. Immediately, realization struck him. "Is this what I think it is?"

She smiled. "Open it and find out..."

So, he did. He tore the envelope open as fast as he could and pulled out the letter inside. And after unfolding it, he began reading it. When he got to the end of it, his eyes went wide and did a fist pump.

"Yes! I got in! I've been accepted to BU's MBA program!"

Cody smiled. "Congratulations, Bro. I never thought I'd ever see this day, but I'm proud of you."

Maya smiled at Zack too. "But not as proud of you as I am..."

Zack was just shaking his head. "Wow..." He just sat there and read the letter again before looking up and smiling at everyone. "This is cause for celebration! And since we're in Mexico where the legal drinking age is 18..." He turned and caught the attention of their waitress. "Would you get us a bottle of your best champagne?"

She nodded, and he turned back towards everyone. "We've all had very big summers, and I think its time we pat ourselves on the back a little. Maya kicked butt in the classroom and out of it. I'm almost finished with my time here on the boat, and I got in to BU's business school. And Cody and Bailey planned their wedding and decided to continue their education at Harvard..." Zack was about to continue when something else suddenly dawned on him. He turned to Maya. "Is this the only letter I've gotten since I left to come back here in July?"

Maya laughed. "No, but this was the only one we could hold up to a lamp and actually read what what it said. There are a few others back in Boston, but they all have thicker envelopes that foiled our lamp trick. Cody offered to steam them open, but I decided against it. We knew how much you wanted to stay at BU, and when we saw you got in, we quit worrying about the other ones. So, when we get head home next week, they're back in the suite waiting on you."

Zack just smiled and shrugged. "Doesn't matter what they say anyways. With you guys showing up here and my acceptance to BU, this has turned out to be one of the best days I've had in a long, long time."

At that time, the waitress arrived with their desserts, a bottle of champagne and four glasses. Once everyone was poured a glass, Zack held up his glass to make a toast. "Here's to all of us kicking butts and taking names this summer!"

Everyone clinked glasses before taking a sip of their champagne. And when she did, Bailey smiled and turned to Cody. "Okay, this stuff I actually like! I don't feel like I'm drinking paint thinner!"

Zack gave her a look of confusion before shaking his head. "That's right. You're the only one of us here who has already turned 21. The rest of us have to wait until next month." He gave her an evil grin. "So, did you tie one on for your birthday, Bailey?"

Bailey laughed. "Hardly! We were back in Kettlecorn for my birthday, so tying one as as you say around my family wasn't going to happen. Besides, I still remember how you were after the Halloween party our freshmen year, and I have no desire to ever be that way myself. I wasn't planning on drinking anything on my birthday until my uncle shoved a mason jar in my face and insisted I take a sip. And then all of my sisters began pressuring me to try it too saying it was a family tradition, so I did. Like I said, it tasted like paint thinner, and I immediately spit out whatever it was. Of course, everyone around me began laughing, and I soon learned that spitting it out was a family tradition too..."

Zack laughed. "Was it moonshine?"

She shrugged. "I have no idea. Anyways, since then, I've had no inclination to try anything else, but I do admit that this champagne is pretty good..." She turned to Cody. "Take a picture of the label with your phone, and we'll make sure to request this kind to London for the wedding reception."

Cody nodded and took a picture of the label. "Done."

"Good..." She turned back to Zack. "Since then, the only alcoholic beverages I've bought have been some dark rum so Cody could show Maya and me how to flambe Bananas Foster and some Kirschwasser so he could show us how to flambe Cherries Jubilee..."

_Maya's Cabin_

After they finished their desserts, Zack took everyone on an abbreviated tour of the new boat so the other three would know how to get to where they wanted to go the next couple of days. Naturally, Cody and Bailey had somehow found a map of the ship on line and were using it to tell Zack what they wanted to see next. Their last stop of the evening was back on the skydeck. Everything up there was closed by then, but Zack used his master key to open up the Easy Squeezie and fix everyone a complimentary smoothee. But by then, it was past eleven o'clock and Maya, Cody and Bailey were all exhausted and worn out. Eleven o'clock there was two o'clock in the morning back in Boston plus they had flown completely across the continent that afternoon. So, Cody and Bailey wished Zack and Maya a good night before leaving to head to their cabin. Maya and Zack weren't far behind them, and since Maya's cabin was much bigger than Zack's, he jumped at the offer to stay in it with her. So, after they stopped by his room so he could grab some clothes for the next day, they made their way to hers.

She laughed. "You know, this is a first for us..."

He looked over at her. "What do you mean?"

"I mean you've packed a bag so you can come stay with me. Usually, its the other way around."

Zack laughed. "True, but to be fair, we could fit three of my cabin inside of yours."

"Well, all I know is that you better be quiet when you get up in the morning. I'm on vacation and don't have anywhere I have to be. So, I'm fully planning on sleeping in tomorrow until I feel like waking up..."

Zack shook his head and sighed. "This is really going to suck having to work while you all take it easy."

Maya grinned. "I know, but its just for a few days. And its like Cody said, karma has come back to bite you in the butt. As I recall, last semester, you teased me that I was going to have to spend my summer studying every night while you sat on the couch, watched television and played video games. Well, now, the situation has been reversed, and I fully plan on enjoying it..." She patted his cheek. "But don't worry, on Wednesday, we'll all fly back to Boston, and you and I will have the rest of the week off to do whatever we want..."

"I guess I can handle that. At least the flight back home will give ample opportunity to finish my journal for my summer class. With you here, I don't want waste any time working on it the next couple of days. Working on the plane will allow me to turn it in as soon as I get home so I don't have to think about it ever again."

"Probably a good idea. How far behind are you on it?"

He grinned. "I have everything done except for what I need to add for today. And I have close to forty entries for my cuisine reviews. Other than teaching Kirby to swim, that's how I've been spending all of my free time."

Maya laughed. "Speaking of which, I need to find Kirby to make sure you taught him properly..."

"Good luck with that then. Actually, you might be right at home in teaching him. Kirby would whine as much as a five year old would at times. And the first time I got him in the deep end of the pool, I thought he was going to go nuts on me..."

She kept laughing. "Well, I'll just have to see that for myself."

"Fine with me." He smiled and pulled her in for a hug. "I just want to enjoy the fact that I actually have you here with me again."

She smiled again. "You like that, huh?"

"Of course I do..."

"Good. Well, if you like that, I think I have something else you're going to like even more..."

"Yeah? What's that?"

"Well, I'm guessing that you would probably be interested in knowing that I've done a lot of thinking about the question you asked me the last time we actually saw each other. Would I be correct?"

Zack paused to just look at Maya. "Well, to be honest, that thought had crossed my mind, but I didn't want to bring it up and potentially ruin the good time we were having..."

Maya smiled back at him. "I appreciate that, but I have made a decision."

Zack just looked at her expectantly. "And?"

She paused. "Well...I've gotten quite used to the bathroom being spotless, so I'll expect that to continue. And just because I've learned how to cook a few things from your brother this summer, don't expect me fix dinner every night. As for chores, I'll expect us both to do our fair. And..."

He leaned in and kissed her. When he finally pulled back, he was grinning. "Are you saying what I think you're saying?"

She grinned back at him. "I'm saying you've got a new full time roommate...if the offer is still on the table."

"Of course it is! Babe, this is going to be great! And of course, I'll agree to anything you say!"

"I think its going to be great too..." She laughed. "But maybe I need to rethink my terms now that you've said you'll agree to anything..."

Zack laughed too. "Fine with me. I'm guessing what I said finally made sense to you, huh?"

"Actually, it was a talk with Bailey that made me realize this would be a good thing."

"Oh yeah?"

Maya nodded. "Yeah. I asked her about how living with Cody had changed their relationship. She helped me see that the concerns I had were completely normal. And she told me how she and Cody dealt with them. Everything she said make complete and perfect sense..."

He grinned. "Remind me to thank her then..."

She laughed. "Well, the main thing she told me was that I should only do things when I was ready for them. So, I asked myself if I was ready, and thought about that for close to a month. In fact, it was my encounter with Ryan that convinced me that I was..."

That surprised Zack. "It did?"

"Yeah. I realized that I'm a lot stronger than I realized I was. I stood up to him and refused to back down. It made me realize that I'm equipped to handle anything thrown in my way. Next to seeing some guy try physically assault me, us living together should be easy. I mean, Bailey made me realize that arguments are going to happen with everyone, but its how you handle them that's important. And Zack, I think were both equipped to handle them too. She also made me realize that us living together would actually be a good thing. If we plan on having a long future together, we need to know that we can co-habituate with each other..." She smiled. "So, I'm ready to see if we can."

He just nodded. "So am I."

"Good. Now, us living together means there is another topic I think we should discuss before we do. I think its important that we both know where we stand in regards to it..."

"Anything. Just name it."

"While I'm looking forward to us living together, I still think we should take..._other things_...slowly."

Zack paused until it dawned on him what she was talking about. "Oh...OH! Yeah, of course. Maya, I would never pressure you to do something you weren't ready for..."

Maya smiled. "I appreciate that..." She laughed. "And I don't foresee us getting trapped in a freak winter storm either. While Bailey said that worked our for her and Cody, I'd rather not risk my life like that..."

"Oh..." He paused again. "So you've talked to Bailey about that and she knows now that you know..."

"Yeah, our conversation covered a myriad of topics, and what she said made a lot of sense. Zack, when the time is right for both of us, we'll know..."

"I can't argue with that..." He sighed. "Well, I guess I now know what Cody meant about me not being able to keep my big mouth shut..."

Maya laughed. "I assume so. And I'll have you know there were some times I did borrow your ear plugs just to be on the safe side. The flambes weren't the only things heating up the suite these past six weeks. I stupidly said I didn't care what they did while I was in the suite with them, and with them no longer trying to keep it a secret, I'm afraid I created two monters. I think now we should both be glad they are wanting their own place next year close to their medical school.." She paused and smiled. "As for us though, its not that I haven't thought about it because I have. But I want to make sure everything is perfect for us. I hope you can understand that."

He smiled back. "Yeah, I understand that. While I've been teaching Kirby to swim, he's been offering me good advice in return. You're right - one step at a time, and no need to rush anything."

"Good. I'm glad we were able to come to a mutual understanding and that we're both on the same page now..."

"Me too..." Zack paused again. "While Bailey and you were having your little chat, you didn't happen to bring up the fact that...you know...that we're both...?"

She just smiled at him. "Now, do you really think I'd tell her that?"

_Boston_

For the next couple of days, everyone enjoyed having a few days to take it easy aboard the new ship. Well, except for Zack. He only had half a day Saturday and Sunday off to spend with them. The other days, he had to actually work while Maya, Bailey and Cody all enjoyed the numerous amenities of the lido deck and the rest of the boat. Still, they all had dinner together every night, and on Sunday evening, Cody suggested some place nice in Cabo for Zack to do his final review of local cuisine on. But come Wednesday, the boat docked in San Diego, and it was time for everyone to finally head back to Boston. Fortunately for Zack, everything he brought with him to the boat and bought over the past six weeks could fit into two bags in addition to his carry on one. And even more fortunately for him, Cody and Bailey had shared one bag for their trip. He finally persuaded his brother to claim his other bag as his so Zack wouldn't have to pay an additional fee to check it himself. Of course, Cody insisted he repack the bag himself so he would know everything that was inside of it just in case. Their direct flight home left San Diego about one thirty Pacific Time that afternoon and arrived back in Boston close to eleven thirty that night Eastern Time. An hour later, they were all back at the hotel, and no one was happier to have everyone back under one roof that Carey. In light of her heightened emotional state, Cody and Bailey felt it wise not to mention at that moment that they would be moving back to New Haven on Saturday.

The next morning, Zack finally got around to opening the other envelopes he had gotten from other schools. But like he said, he couldn't have cared less what they said. His acceptance to both Boston College and Northeastern meant nothing to him, and he simply shrugged off his rejection from MIT. BU was the school he wanted to go to, and he was looking forward to continuing his education there. For the next two days, Thursday and Friday, Zack and Maya took it as easy as possible as both relished not having anything they had to do. Well, almost. They did make one trip over to BU so Zack could drop off his 'homework' to the school of hospitality administration. And while they were on campus, Maya decided to stop by to see her physics professor in hopes of finding out her final grade in that class. To her delight, she had received her second A of the summer with rather ease.

During those same two days, Cody and Bailey did everything they could to get ready to move back to New Haven. On Wednesday, they did all of their laundry, and by Friday night, they had everything they owned packed. But before they left Boston, they had a few errands to run. On Friday night, they went out to do a little shopping for a few items they would need to carry out Bailey's decorating plans for their new dorm room.

On Saturday morning, Bailey and Cody were up early so they could be on the road by eight AM. And as they were going over their checklist one last time to make sure they had everything, both looked up in shock to see that Zack and Maya walking out of their bedroom. Cody did a double take before looking over at the stove.

"Whoa! Its 6:45 AM on a Saturday!" He turned back to Zack and Maya. "What are you two doing up this early?"

Zack grinned. "Fulfilling a promise I made. We went to Six Flags the week before I left in May, and I told Maya we'd go back again once I got back for good. So, we're heading down there today. The park opens at ten o'clock, and we plan on being there when it does..." He laughed. "Now, I would say you two could follow us until the I-84/I-90 spilt, but we all know you two will be eating our dust once we hit the interstate."

Bailey rolled her eyes. "Yeah, well...it will be just the two of you in your car. On the other hand, we'll have us as well as everything we own in ours. Excuse us if we plan on driving as carefully as possible..."

He laughed. "Well, you two better do a good job getting your new room set up this afternoon because we're crashing with you tonight!"

Cody shook his head and sighed. "Great. We really do appreciate you giving us so much prior notice..."

By eight o'clock that morning, Cody and Bailey hugged Carey goodbye even though she wasn't happy about them having to leave so soon after she finally got everyone back. But they just reminded her that that time next year, they would be back in Boston to stay. That seemed to appease Carey, and it allowed them to get on the road without any further guilt trips. And Zack had been right - before they had even got out of the city limits, Zack and Maya had pulled way out in front of Cody and Bailey on the interstate. But like Cody said before, karma was indeed alive and well. Just past the I-495 interchange, he and Bailey just waved as they passed Zack pulled off on the side of the road – with a state trooper parked behind him with his lights flashing.

_New Haven_

Once they got back to New Haven, Cody and Bailey quickly noticed a lot of people milling about Lanman-Wright Hall, their dorm their freshmen years. Both just looked at each other and laughed as they realized it had been three years since they had gone through freshmen orientation themselves. Of course, just to be safe, both checked the sky and were relieved that that is was a clear cloudless day. Fortunately, it was a Saturday as it would make things easier in finding a close parking space. Lucking out, they found a spot right outside of Berkeley North and grabbed it before anyone else could. First things first, they headed inside to sign in and get the keys to their room and mailboxes. And before they headed back to the car to begin unloading it, they decided to head up to the fifth floor to check out their new room. And to say that it was nice would have been a complete understatement. Even their room in the Caribbean the previous spring break wasn't as spacious as this place was.

Both wandered about checking it out completely, and they loved everything about it. It was even better than they could have imagined after seeing the floor plans. Specifically, Bailey was enthralled with the garden tub in their bathroom and could already picturing herself relaxing in it after long days of studying. On the other hand, Cody couldn't help but to check out their kitchenette area. It actually had a built in full size refrigerator and microwave which he began imagining the possibilities of. While he wished it had an actual stove too, he wasn't about to complain especially since they did have the country's best dining hall a few floors down. Once he left that area, he found Bailey still fawning over their bathroom.

He laughed. "It'll still be here once we've moved everything in. You ready to go get that over with?"

She turned to him and smiled. "Yeah, lets do it. Sweetie, I already know this place is going to be perfect!"

For the next hour, they made several trips from the car up to their room toting all of their belongings with them. By one o'clock that afternoon, they had everything upstairs and in a big pile in the middle of their new common/living room. After dropping off the boxes from their last trip, Bailey turned to Cody and grinned.

"Ready to get started on our little home improvement project?"

He nodded. "Yeah." He reached down and picked up something. "I've got my tool box right here. I just hope this will work..."

She picked up a couple of plastic bags. "Don't worry. It will."

Another hour later, they had finished their not so extreme makeover home edition and were standing there admiring their handy work.

Bailey elbowed Cody and laughed. "See? Its just like I said it would be..."

Cody smiled. "Yeah, I think I'm really going to like this arrangement..."

At that moment, there was a knock at the door to their room. And when they opened it, they found Gertie and Tapeworm standing there with big grins on their faces.

"Can you believe these are actually our dorm rooms? I was completely floored when I saw ours!"

Bailey smiled. "Yeah, they amazing! Come on in, guys."

They did, and immediately noticed all of Cody and Bailey's things were still piled in the middle of the common room. "You guys just get here too?"

Cody shook his head. "Nah...we've been doing some...rearranging of furniture."

Bailey lead them into one of the bedrooms, but all it had in there were two desks and two chairs. "We decided to make one of the bedrooms an office of sorts. We'll put our bookshelves and the big printer in here later." She lead them to the other bedroom. "And we made this one our actual bedroom. We shoved the two dressers together to make one big one. And we pushed both the twins beds together, and we bought one of those kits that converts two twins into a king sized bed. There is a fitted pad that fits on top of the two mattresses so you can't tell where they meet. Plus, there are several straps that hold them together and keeps them from sliding apart. Finally, we bought a king sized egg crate mattress pad to put on top. And on top of it, we bought a king sized bed in a bag with two spare sets of sheets we found on clearance..."

"Can you tell any difference?"

"Nope. We've already tried it out, and if we hadn't done it ourselves, we would never have known it wasn't really a king."

Gertie and Tapeworm could only look on in amazement at what Cody and Bailey had done with their room. Almost immediately, Gertie turned to Tapeworm. "I think we need to make a trip to Bed, Bath and Beyond ourselves this afternoon..."

He nodded. "I was just about to say the exact same thing..." He paused. "Tell you what, lets unload our things from my Dad's truck first. Then we can make a run out to get everything we need there and at Wal-Mart. While you two ladies bring all that stuff back in their car, Cody and I will head over to the storage facility and get our other furniture..."

So, that's exactly what they did. By five o'clock that afternoon, all of their furniture had been moved back in and set up as well as Gertie and Tapeworm's room having been converted in a manner similar to Cody and Bailey's. And when they finished that, it was time to begin unpacking everything. Cody and Bailey decided to to put all of their winter clothes in the closet in their office since they wouldn't need them for a few months. And by seven o'clock, everything was unpacked, stored away, hung up or hooked up. Since the plan was to meet Gertie and Tapeworm for dinner at 8:00, they had an hour, and both were dripping with sweat.

Cody grinned at her. "I noticed how much you were checking out our tub earlier. How does trying it out right now sound to you?"

Bailey grinned back at him. "Sounds like the best idea I've heard in a long time!"

And it was even better than Bailey could have imagined. While they couldn't take their time, both knew that they were going to love having their own private bathroom with a tub they could share as often as they wanted. But since they had a deadline to meet, they did have to hurry and focus on actually getting cleaned up. By eight fifteen that night, the four of them were heading towards a brick oven pizza place right off of campus. And once they ordered, Bailey spoke up.

"Now that we have some time, there are a couple of things we need to fill you two in on."

"Oh yeah? Like what?"

Bailey smiled. "Well, almost all of our wedding is now planned..." She went on to fill them in on all of the details. "So, London will be expecting you guys to RSVP to the invitation ASAP..."

Gertie smiled back. "Don't worry. We sent back our RSVP the day after we got our invitation. Now, what's your other news?"

Cody spoke up. "We know where we're going to med school now..."

"Oh yeah? Which lucky school did you finally decide on?"

He leaned in close and practically whispered to them. "Harvard..."

Tapeworm's practically shouted out. "Harvard!" He leaned in and whispered to them. "What about what they did to you during your interview there?"

Quickly, Cody and Bailey explained for the umpteenth time everything that had happened to them over the summer that lead to them finally choosing Harvard. "Besides, when the best medical school in the country is going to pay you to go there, its kind of hard to turn down..."

Tapeworm laughed. "So much for school loyalty!"

"Oh, we'll still be loyal to Yale. We both may be moving back to Boston, but it doesn't mean we have to like the school we're going to attend. We'll still root for Yale in The Game..." Cody paused. "But we're smart enough to know not to wear Harvard gear around here or Yale gear out in public around the campus there next year..."

While everyone was enjoying getting to hang out with each other again, it started getting late, and they were all kind of itching to try head back to their new rooms for their first nights in them. So they decided to call it a night...well, Gertie and Tapeworm did. Cody and Bailey couldn't until their guests showed up. About twelve thirty, they were relieved when they finally got a call from Zack saying they were fifteen minutes away. As they waited for them to arrive, Cody shook his head and sighed.

"Our first night in our first official place together, and we don't even get to spend it by ourselves."

Bailey rubbed his back. "I know, but think of it this way. Every other night after this, we will. While we're here, this place will just be for me and you..." She grinned. "Besides, we have lot more room now to do our streaking in..."

Cody grinned at her. "Now that's the best idea I've heard in a long time!" He yawned and stretched. "Unfortunately, I might need a rain check until tomorrow. Bails, I'm beat..."

She snuggled in closer to him on the futon. "You and me both...Its been a long summer."

"You can say that again. And after the summer we've had, it feels good to be back here again."

"Yeah, it does." She paused and let out a little laugh. "And to think, on Wednesday we'll actually begin our final year of college..."

"And hopefully easiest and less drama filled one..."

"Sounds good to me..."

He was about to say something else when his phone began ringing again. Answering, he found out that Zack and Maya were both downstairs in the lobby. So, Cody headed down to check them in as guests for the night. As they walked up the stairs to the fifth floor, Cody couldn't help but smirk at his brother.

"Did you remember to drive the speed limit the rest of your drive this morning?"

Zack laughed. "Of course not. I didn't even get a ticket either. Turns out the state trooper that pulled us over is the husband of Moseby's secretary. When he saw my license, he recognized my name. So, he let us go with a warning..."

Cody sighed. "Of course he did..."

He lead them down the hallway to his and Bailey's room, and when Zack and Maya saw Cody and Bailey's new dorm suite, they were in awe too.

"Whoa! If my dorm room had been like this, I never would have moved out of it..."

Zack just shook his head. "If your dorm room had been like this, I would have moved in with you..."

___To be Continued..._

**AN: I decided to say screw it and just post a new chapter every other day.**


	9. Senior Moments

_Episode 9_

_"Senior Moments"_

_I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did._

_Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them._

_Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves._

_And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so..._

_New Haven_

After getting a brief tour of the suite, it was time for everyone to call it a night. While Cody and Bailey were worn out from moving all day, Zack and Maya were exhausted after a day of fun at the amusement park. Plus, they had gotten up way earlier than they were used to that morning. Of course, when it was time to go to bed, Zack tried to unsuccessfully argue that since they were the guests that Cody and Bailey should let he and Maya have their bedroom for the night. Naturally, Cody and Bailey both immediately shot down that idea. But, they were nice enough to pull the futon out for them and give them pillows and a blanket. After making sure they knew where the bathroom was, Cody and Bailey headed into their bedroom for their first night in their new bed. And even though they now had essentially a king sized bed, they still didn't even use half of it as they continued to sleep curled up with each other.

The next morning, Cody and Bailey were up by six AM. Even though it was Sunday, they wanted to go ahead and get in the habit of waking up when they would normally during the rest of the semester. So, Bailey went ahead and showered first while Cody got a pot of coffee brewing. And when she was done, Cody took her place as she walked into their kitchenette to pour herself a mug. As she was blowing on it to cool it down a little, she heard a voice behind her.

"Is that for everyone?"

Bailey turned and smiled at Maya. "Yeah, mugs are in the far cabinet as well as sugar packets. Cream is in the refrigerator."

Maya nodded still half asleep and fixed her own cup. And after she got her first jolt of caffeine that morning, she turned to Bailey. "This place is great..." She paused and grinned. "And probably a good idea to make your bedroom the one that doesn't share a common wall with someone else's room..."

Bailey laughed. "Yeah, we thought that would be wise..."

"Well, you two won't have to worry about sneaking around anymore..." She laughed too. "And I won't have to wear earplugs anymore..."

"Hey, don't blame us. Once you told me you knew, we didn't have to worry about you finding out anymore..."

Maya laughed again. "Yeah, I kind of regret that now..."

About that time, Cody came out of the bathroom after finishing his shower. Maya was about to go take her turn since she was already up, but Zack rolled off the futon and ran into the bathroom before she could. So, she just shrugged. "Oh well..."

Bailey smiled. "Don't worry. At this hour on a Sunday morning, there should be plenty of hot water around here."

"True..." Maya paused. "While I'm thinking about it now, I wanted to ask you about your robe. I've noticed it for several weeks and kept meaning to ask you where you got it."

"You like it?"

"Yeah, I love it. I love that color, and I love all the moons and stars all over it."

Bailey smiled. "Cody bought it for me for my birthday..." She paused. "Well, this one and another one, but I only wear it when its just he and I around. But both are this color. He says its the same lavender color that my dress was for the Miss Tipton pageant, and he says he really loves way this color looks on me."

"Well, its gorgeous..." She paused again. "Wait a minute...are you telling me he picked it out all on his own?"

"Yeah. I did hint around that a needed a new robe, but he picked this one out all by himself..."

Maya laughed. "Looks like you have finally taught him well. Maybe you won't have to try on things any more and make excuses why you won't buy them yourself?"

Bailey laughed too. "Well, on things I really do want, I will. Other than that, I trust that Cody knows me well enough to know what I would like."

"Good for you. Now, if I can only get Zack trained that well too..."

"Get Zack trained that well for what?"

Both Maya and Bailey turned to see Cody standing there, and Maya tried to quickly cover. "Oh, trained well enough to keep the bathroom as clean as you did this summer..."

Cody went to fix his own cup of coffee and laughed. "Good luck with that then..."

About that time, Zack walked out of the bathroom with the biggest grin on his face.

"Okay, I can see you guys don't mess around down here at Yale! They went full out in remodeling this place! The toilet seat actually has a heater in it to keep your butt warm!" He laughed. "I gotta get one of those for our suite back at the Tipton!"

Maya, Bailey and Cody just looked at each other and shook their heads. But soon after, Maya and Zack had to get cleaned up and dressed as the four of them were supposed to meet up with Tapeworm and Gertie to grab some breakfast before Zack and Maya had to drive back to Boston. Since the dining hall wouldn't be open for business until the next day, everyone headed over to the Dunkin' Donuts across the street from New Haven Green, about an eight minute walk from their dorm. And as they ate, Zack had the chance to catch up with Tapeworm and share some of the stories from his summer on this ship. Tapeworm could only shake his head at the thought of getting class credit for living on a cruise ship all summer. But soon enough, it was time for Zack and Maya to head back to Boston. Before they did though, Zack did do everyone a favor by following them over their parking garage to drop off their cars before dropping them both off outside of Berkeley North. And then it was time to say their goodbyes.

"Well, Codester...thanks for putting us up last night. I have to admit to you guys have some pretty sweet suites. But, while you all have to start classes on Wednesday, Maya and I are head back to Boston were we plan on doing absolutely nothing until our classes start back next Tuesday..."

Cody smirked. "Oh, I don't know about all of that, Bro. I know of at least one thing you need to do sometime very soon..."

Zack just looked at him. "Yeah? What's that?"

"Talk to London and set up an appointment with Arturo so he can take your measurements. I've already told Dad he needs to get his taken, and Bailey's Mom is going to take Clyde's and send them to us." Cody just gave his brother a look that Zack couldn't quite decipher. "I think you'll find this experience to be quite...interesting."

For some reason, Zack didn't like the way Cody had just said that. "And just what do you mean by that?"

Cody just grinned. "Oh, nothing. Nothing at all..."

Zack was pretty sure there was something his brother wasn't telling him, but for the life of him, he couldn't figure out what. Of course, seeing the looks on Maya's and Bailey's faces didn't make him feel any better either. But he just chalked it up to them having an inside joke from over the summer, and he just shrugged.

"Oh well, you guys have fun, and don't study too hard." He paused and began laughing. "Oh, who am I kidding? I know those two were doing school work over the summer when they didn't have to. They're probably counting down the hours until their first class begins..."

Tapeworm laughed. "That wouldn't surprise me either. Actually, I more interested in seeing if those two will actually have to cross Grove Street this year to get to one of their classes. Last semester, their schedule was completely ridiculous..."

**(AN: Grove Street is the road on Yale's campus that separates Cross Campus where many of the residential colleges like Berkeley are located from the northern part of campus where many of the academic colleges like the colleges of engineering and Science Hill are located.)**

Well, Tapeworm was actually going to get his wish that semester. He was almost ecstatic when he learned that Cody and Bailey would indeed have to cross Grove Street for one of their classes, but his jubilation was soon gone when he discovered that the building where that class would be held in was Sheffield Sterling Strathcona Hall. The Sheff, as it was affectionately known, was catercorner across Grove Street from the Commons, only about a five minute walk from Berkeley North. But that wasn't the most disheartening aspect of their schedule that semester to him. When he found out the best part of their schedule, he could only shake his head in disgust again.

"You guys really only have to go to class on Tuesdays and Thursdays?"

Cody and Bailey could only grin at him. It was true. They only had two classes they had to take and then two classes they could take whatever they wanted. And they were really only going to take the latter two classes so they could remain full time students. The first of the courses that were required of them was the one they had already been working on for half of the summer – their Ethics, Politics & Economics senior essay, EP&E 491. The second of their mandatory courses was their senior requirement in Biology – MCDB 485. It would be half of their senior project in Biology, and they would finish it up during the spring semester in MCDB 486. And while the EP&E senior essay would be an actual paper, their biology one would involve them spending 10-12 hours a week in the lab doing research on their chosen topics. Throughout the course of the school year, they would meet once a month with a small group of other Biology seniors to discuss their experiments, and at the end of the spring semester, they would have to submit a write up and do a presentation on their findings.

That left them two classes in whichever they could take whatever they wanted. And like they had discussed at the end of the previous semester, Cody and Bailey had in fact perused the list of Yale gut courses. They each found one class they each really wanted to take as well as two classes both either had heard good things about or whose subject matter sounded fascinating. Since the course Cody thought was interesting was offered in the fall and the one Bailey liked would be in the spring, they decided to pair each one of those up with one of the other classes that interested them. So, on Tuesdays and Thursdays, they had Cody's choice, PSYC 123 – the Psychology, Biology and Politics of Food, from 9:00-10:15. And following it from 10:30-11:45, they would have CPSC 180, Computers and the Law. The latter class was renown around campus for being one of the most fascinating...and easiest classes on campus. It had recently been affectionately dubbed Wikipedia 101. It was a widely held belief around campus that everyone should take the professor teaching the class at least once during their time at Yale. And to make it even more urgent for students on campus, there were rumors circulating around that this was going to be his last year before retiring.

On the Monday morning before classes were to begin on Wednesday, Cody and Bailey had appointments to speak with both of their senior project faculty sponsors. And their EP&E professor, Dr. Ryan, was extremely impressed that they both already had extensive outlines done for their essays. As far as she could see, both were off to a great start and approved them both to begin writing their papers in earnest. Of course, she did want to schedule a meeting with them every couple of weeks so they could discuss the progress they were making. That was fine with Cody and Bailey, and they set up consecutive meetings with her on Friday mornings at 8:00 and 8:15. The figured they could get them both out of the way before breakfast. Actually, having those meetings on Fridays was perfect for them as they had designated Fridays to be their days to actually stay in their room to do their actual writing. With their essays needing to be at approximately 40 pages long, they figured that by averaging 5 pages a week, they should be able to complete and hand in rough drafts before fall break in mid October.

Of course, unbeknownst to Zack, that hadn't been the only project Cody and Bailey had been working on over the summer. To them, it wasn't really that big of a deal, but they figured Zack would have really gotten on their cases if he knew just how much else they had gotten done. Once they had finished their research for their EP&E papers on Saturday afternoon in late July, they had decided to stay in the library and work on some research for their Biology ones. So, the week before they left to head for the boat, they did a little more than just their outlines for their EP&E papers. Cody and Bailey had gotten a little ambitious and completed preliminary research proposals for their Biology projects including lists of some experiments they were both planning to perform to test each of their hypotheses. Their Biology professor, Dr. Cole, was equally impressed with what they had so far. He green lighted the experiments they did have and even gave them some other ideas for others they might want to consider as well. Further, Dr. Cole told them to stop by his office and see him at any time if they needed any additional help.

As they walked over to the bookstore to buy their books for the semester, they decided that since they needed to put in 10-12 hours a week in the lab, they would set aside Mondays and Wednesdays each week to get that done. The only thing that was really bothering them was that the university was going to make them wait until school began back again on Wednesday before allowing them access to the Biology labs. Two days doesn't seem like that big of a deal, but both had wanted to get started as soon as possible as both had a couple of experiments in mind that could take up to 6 months for any definitive results to be seen.

With their Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays all filled up working on their two senior projects, that left them Tuesday and Thursday afternoons to do their homework for their other two classes. And both of those would have some perks that both of them found to be very nice. Both classes would have final projects that allowed them to be done in small groups, and they just grinned at each other knowing they had a chance to atone for the previous times that had worked on group projects together. After their ones in high school involving pretending to be married and searching for Galapagos Gertie, they were grateful for a second chance to show what they could do together. And even better, their computer science class offered them the choice between a final group project or a take home final for the biggest part of their grade. If they chose the group project, they could still take the final for extra credit if they needed to boost their final grades. And even better than that, the final in their Food class would be given in class the last day of the semester and not during the finals period. If everything worked out the way they hoped they hoped it would, they would have nothing to do all of reading and finals weeks except to either get further ahead on their biology projects or leave and have a longer Christmas break.

So, to say they were happy with their schedules would be an colossal understatement. And both knew how fortunate they were to be able to get them. Every undergraduate they knew wanted to get into their two gut classes but weren't going to be able to due huge waiting lists for them both. Spots in the classes were given first to seniors, so Cody and Bailey used that to secure their placements in them. Even with both classes having room for over a hundred students each, at least twice that amount were turned away during the class shopping periods. And for the seniors, if you missed even one of the classes the first two weeks, you were bumped down to the bottom of the list. But that wasn't a problem for Cody and Bailey as they still had their perfect attendance records in tact.

Of course, as was now becoming another tradition for them, Tapeworm was forced to grumble and complain about their schedules. And if possible, he was even more disheartened than he was the semester before.

"You two only go to actual classes two days a week, and one of those classes is in the Sheff and the other one is over in Harkness..." He shook his head in disbelief. "Un-freaking-believable! And here I thought your last semesters were were ridiculous! Oh, and your Computers and the Law class is the biggest joke in our department! We've all been told we can't take it because no self respecting Computer Science major would be caught dead in there..."

Cody laughed. "Sounds like some one is bitter. And remember, we're not computer science majors. But don't worry, pretty much all day on Mondays and Wednesdays, we'll be up on Science Hill. So, we will be getting our exercise in this semester."

That was of no real comfort to Tapeworm, but Gertie couldn't help but rub his arm and laugh. "Look at the bright side, Howie. Cody and Bailey will be able to give us an idea of how much of a pain in the butt these senior projects are going to be. Remember, you and I both have ours next semester..."

He sighed. "That's true I guess..."

Bailey couldn't help herself and smiled. "Well, I'm not sure how much help we'll be. The one we have due by the end of the semester should be pretty easy. All we basically have to do is actually sit down and write up everything we have. Now, I do admit, our other one could end up being a pain..."

Gertie just shrugged. "Well, with how much of a bear my semester is going to be, I'm looking forward to having an easier one next semester. And I know is that I'm saving spots in my schedule for those two classes next semester you two were telling me about. I think they sound awesome!"

Cody sighed. "In theory. And I know I agreed to take it, but I'm getting a bad feeling about the one Bailey has her eye on..."

Tapeworm laughed. "Now its you that sounds a little bitter..." He paused and shook his head again. "I just thought of something else - this semester, neither of you have to worry about the idiotic Labor Day swap since you don't have classes on either Monday or Friday."

"That's true, but on Friday, we'll be up here all day working on our papers. We won't get to see the freshmen freak out about it..."

On Wednesday, 99% of the students at Yale began the Fall 2014 semester, but Cody and Bailey were among the 1% that had no classes scheduled for that day. But they were busy in their own right as they were in the biology lab they were assigned spaces in bright and early that morning to get to work. And by noon, they had got gotten the experiments that would take the most time to complete in motion. Once that was done, they left to grab some lunch before hitting the library to continue doing some research on the suggestions Dr. Cole had given them. And as they ate, Cody just shook his head.

"We may only be in class two days a week, but I have a feeling this semester is going to be busier than anyone realizes..."

_Boston_

After they returned from New Haven early Sunday afternoon, Zack thought he was looking at a week of him and Maya having absolutely nothing to do, but he didn't quite realize just how wrong he would turn out to be. Maya had to return to work the next day as she had already been off for an entire week. And on that Monday morning, Moseby called and requested Zack to make an appearance at the office. He couldn't quite place why, but Zack was getting a bad feeling about what it was that Moseby wanted. And it turns out he was right. Moseby wanted Zack to come back to work full time the rest of the week so he could fill them in on the S.S. Tipton as well as catch back up on what he needed to for London Inns before school started back the following week. Once they both finally got back to the Tipton that night, Zack could only shake his head.

"Okay, I take it all back! I wish our classes were beginning on Wednesday too instead of next week. The rest of this week is going to suck!"

Maya laughed. "I know, but I guess this is just the final proof we need that our summers are officially over. I guess its coming back to bite me in the butt now when I wished this summer would hurry up and end and for school to start back. But look on the bright side...we'll have next Monday off for Labor Day, and I'm pretty sure there's no chance of you getting seasick back at your old office."

"Babe, I love you, but that really doesn't make me feel any better right now..."

Finally, the holiday weekend arrived, but Zack and Maya didn't much leave the hotel for those three days. After both having to work over forty hours that week, both were looking forward to doing nothing and just resting up for their first day of school on Tuesday. So they spent a lot of time hanging around the hotel's pool even though both already had tans. The only time they did leave the Tipton's confines was to head over to the bookstore to buy their books and supplies. On that Monday evening, they said goodbye to their weekand by just vegging out in front of the television. Well, Zack did. Maya was studying the subway schedule on her laptop making sure she knew when she had to be at the subway stop in the morning. Once she confident she did, Zack looked over at her.

"Did you get it figured out?"

She nodded and sighed. "Yeah, I needed to be down there by 7:12..."

"That sucks..."

She shrugged. "It is what it is..." She smirked at him. "Unlike you, I have a full semester again, so I had to schedule my classes when I could..."

Zack just grinned. "Hey, I make no bones about that fact that I should have a somewhat easy semester than normal. I mean, all I have to do is just pass my classes from here on out as I've already been accepted to BU's grad school, so its not like I have to do as well as I can to impress them now..."

Maya realized it was now time to have the conversation with Zack that she had put off for most of the summer. "So, that's it, huh? BU's your choice and that's all there is to it? You're set on going there?"

He looked at her in confusion. "Why wouldn't I be? Its the school I want to go to, I already know may way around campus, and best of all, you're there too. Yeah, I got into BC and Northeastern, but I only applied to those places as back ups just in case. Besides, BU's School of Management is a pretty good grad school..."

"I'm not saying that its not. Zack, I know MIT already told you no, but there is an even the bigger fish still out there. I wasn't going to bring this up while you were away on the boat, but Zack, there is still a chance for you with Harvard. I know you haven't heard back from them yet, but it is still a possibility. Cody getting accepted to their medical school with a free ride should be all the evidence you need that your family isn't banned from there anymore..."

He smiled. "Babe, as Cody used to always tell me, a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush. I have a school I want to go to and who wants me. So, I could care less what Harvard has to say to me now. In fact, if I never heard back from them, it would be no skin off my back. Trust me, I didn't grow up dreaming of going there like Cody or Bailey did." He laughed. "My dreams of college, if I had actually gone to one, were of the University of Hawaii or Tahiti Tech..."

Maya rolled her eyes. "I can only imagine why. But what if Harvard does end up accepting you?"

Zack just laughed again. "Babe, I seriously doubt that's going to happen. If MIT shot me down, I think its pretty safe to say Harvard will too. I mean, they've already filled their quota of Martins and soon to be Martins. Besides, I'm thankful for what I have right now. I've got a good job, getting a good education, and I have a wonderful girlfriend." He smiled at her. "I can't be too greedy, can I?"

"Well, like Gordon Gekko once said, greed is good..." Maya sighed. "But I do understand what you're saying. As long as you're happy, that's all that matters to me."

He leaned in and kissed her. "I am. I'm very happy." He paused and laughed again. "Well, I'm not happy that summer is almost over and school starts back tomorrow, but other than that..."

Maya just gave him a look. "Poor baby. You got your course credit living on a cruise ship all summer and haven't seen the inside of a classroom since May. I saw one just a couple of weeks ago. So, no sympathy for you here..."

But neither one could really complain about their upcoming fall schedules. Like Zack said, he would only have fourteen hours, and they would spread out over four classes. Entering his senior year, He was only two classes shy of completing his business management minor, and the next course in line for him to take was SMG OB 221, The Dynamics of Leading Organizations. The lecture session of that class would be held on Wednesday afternoons from 2:00-4:00 with a discussion section/laboratory on Friday mornings from 9:00-12:00. That left him with three classes to choose that would go towards completing his hospitality administration requirements. He had one class he was required to take, and that was SHA HF 460, Hospitality Strategic Marketing. It would meet on Tuesday afternoons from 2:00-5:00. His final two classes would be hospitality electives which meant he got to choose whatever he wanted. The first one he chose was SHA HF 275, Convention and Event Management on Thursday afternoons from 2:00-5:00. Zack figured that would be a class that could come in handy some day if London Inns ever tried to get into the convention business. But the class he thought could really be useful for London Inns in the short term was SHA HF 353, Introduction to New Hotel Development. Not only would it be potentially beneficial, it was only a two credit course that met on Monday afternoons from 3:00-5:00.

That left him Monday through Thursday mornings to work. And since Maya was going to have 8:00 classes once again, he made a show of camaraderie with her by choosing to work 8:00-12:00 those days to get in sixteen hours a week.

And Maya did indeed have 8:00 classes everyday but Friday. But after having commuted from the Tipton to campus all summer, she was well aware of how long it would take her to get from door to door. With that knowledge tucked away in the back of her mind, she wasn't worried about being late for her early classes. Her first 8:00 AM class was SAR HP 531, Clinical Medicine I on Monday and Wednesday mornings from 8:00-10:00, and it had a lab section on Tuesday afternoons from 2:00-4:00. Her other early class was SAR PT 520, Functional Anatomy, on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 8:00-10:00 with its accompanying lab section on Thursday afternoons from 2:00-4:00. Also on Mondays and Wednesdays, she would have SAR PT 515, Physical Therapy Examination, from 10:30-12:30. And also on Tuesdays and Tuesdays, she would have SAR HP 561, Evidence Based Practice from 10:30-12:30. That just left Fridays where she had SAR AT 404, Clinical Athletic Training I from 9:00-11:00 with a discussion section immediately following it in the same classroom from 11:00-12:00.

That schedule would allow her and Zack to have lunch together everyday on campus. And it allowed her to continue to work on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays in the afternoons. While she would be doing more aquatic therapy work on Mondays and Wednesdays, there was such a high demand enough from parents for her to continue to teach swim lessons that she would do those on Friday afternoons. And according to her boss, her sections were the first ones to fill up.

On their first day of classes on Tuesday, Zack and Maya met up for lunch on campus before their afternoon classes. And when they got there, Zack smiled at her.

"Have you seen the school newspaper yet this morning?"

She shook her head. "No, I haven't had a chance to look at it yet. Why?"

He handed her a copy of it, and she happened to see the headline. _'BU Hockey Star's Career is Over!'_. Seeing that, she quickly scanned the article before shaking her head. And Zack just laughed.

"I guess they'll print anything, huh? He didn't re-injure himself trying to come back to soon from his first injury. He got injured when he tried to mess with one Maya Bennett!"

Maya just looked up at him and laughed. "I guess so. Too bad no one else will know what really happened though..."

_New Haven_

About that same time in New Haven, Cody and Bailey were returning back to Berkeley North after their computer science class over in the Sheff. The plan was to head up to their room to drop off their backpacks before going down to the dining hall to grab some lunch. As they entered lobby of their dorm, they were discussing the homework assignments that they had been assigned in both of their classes that morning when Master Chun ran over to them and stopped them.

"This must be my lucky day! I needed to see you two, and you just happened to be walking by!"

"Everything okay, Master Chun?" Cody laughed. "I mean, the last time you stopped us like this, you dropped the bomb on us about the new and improved Berkeley College. And if we may say, its even better than we could have ever imagined."

He smiled. "Nothing this major this time. But first, how are you two enjoying your new room. Everything going okay with you two living together so far?"

Bailey smiled. "We absolutely love it, and no problems whatsoever living with Cody..." She paused and laughed. "Well, he still snores, but that's something I've gotten used to by now. We can only hope we have some place as nice to live next year..."

Master Chun just gave them a look before grinning. "You mean when you're up in Boston at Harvard Medical School?"

Both just looked at him in surprise. "How did you know that?"

He laughed. "Oh, I have a friend up in their admissions office. He called me towards the end of last semester to get my opinion of the two of you. Naturally, I gave you both a glowing review. But, I'm guessing I did too good of a job because he called me back about a month or so ago to rub it in that Harvard was stealing away two of Yale's finest. So, while the Yale medical school wouldn't be too happy about what I did, I wish you both a sincere congratulations."

Cody sighed. "We appreciate that, but we thought if that information got out around here, well...you know.."

"Don't worry about it. As much as I despise Harvard, they do have the top ranked medical school in the country. So, I can't blame you both for going for the best...especially when they're going to pay you." He paused and teased them. "Now, I will keep this information to myself if you two will do me a huge favor..."

"What's that?"

Master Chun smiled. "Well, you two have done extremely well in a lot of the science courses around here. Can I put you two down on my list of potential tutors if other students are having trouble in those classes?"

Bailey smiled again. "Sure, we'd be happy to. We both did tutoring in high school, and over this summer, we helped Cody's twin brother's girlfriend with her physics class at BU. So, it would be nothing new for us..."

"Thank you both. In particular, I've already had several students complain to me about their organic chemisty classes after only a couple of classes. I know you two both aced that class, so if you two could help out with that, I'd be most appreciative."

Cody laughed. "We'll try our best, but after the MCAT, we might have done a huge brain flush on some things."

Master Chun just shook his head. "I seriously doubt that. But since I know you both are working on dual senior projects this semester, I'll try not to send too many your way if I can help it. But if I have to, when would fit your schedules the best?"

They turned to each other to think that over. "I guess we'd probably say Tuesday and Thursday afternoons. Mondays and Wednesdays, we'll be on Science Hill or in the library all day. And Fridays are our days to write our EP&E papers. I guess we'd prefer we not be interrupted on Fridays so we can get those done as soon as possible."

"Works for me." He grinned. "But, I will make sure they know you two won't be available on Thursday afternoons after five o'clock. While we here at Berkeley may not win many intramural competitions, I'm not about to do anything to jeopardize us winning our fourth straight ping pong crown. Those matches have already been scheduled for Thursday afternoons at six, and I want you two to be free to continue your dominance over the other residential collages again. I really think we have a great chance of being the first college ever to be back to back to back to back champions in anything." He paused and sighed. "Though, I'm really dreading next year when we won't have you two anymore..."

Bailey laughed. "Well, we'll do our best. Cody and I did do some practicing over the summer, so we should be ready."

Cody shook his head. "What my beautiful fiancee means to say is we spent the summer with her continuing to kill me when we played one on one. So, she should be ready. My job is to just not do anything to screw up and to get out of her way..."

_Boston_

That Friday afternoon, Zack and Maya met up for lunch once again. But Fridays were the days Zack loved best. Ordinarily, after they had lunch, they both still had either work or class to go to that afternoon. But on Fridays, he was done for the day after 12:30. And he knew he was going to love to tease her about that fact for the rest of the semester. That afternoon, he mentioned in passing that he might head home and play some video games online with Woody and Marcus. But that day, Maya had a good feeling that his plans were about to change.

"So, you think you're heading back to the suite to play video games with Woody and Marcus, huh?"

He laughed. "Yeah, I do. I'm done for the day, Babe. I don't have any homework I have to do, so I have nothing else to do..."

But Maya had a look on her face like that of the cat who ate the canary. "Actually, you do, Zack. I ran into London this morning while I was waiting on you in the lobby. She said Arturo, the guy who is designing Bailey's wedding gown and all the stuff for the guys, is stopping by her penthouse this afternoon about three o'clock. I was supposed to tell you to stop by there then to get your measurements taken."

He shrugged. "Well, I did tell the Codester I would. How long do you think it will take?"

Maya just shrugged herself. "Not long...I was there when Cody got his taken, and I think Arturo was done with him in less than ten or fifteen minutes..." She gave him a mischievous smile. "So, it shouldn't taken you too long, and then you can get back to your video games..."

Zack just gave her a look. "Okay, first Cody and now you. I keep getting the feeling that there is something about this that you all aren't telling me. It almost feels like you all are setting me up for something, but I have no idea what it could be..."

She gave him her best hurt look. "Now, what I do something like that to the man I love?"

He paused. "Yeah, I think you would if you knew it was going to be funny. Now, tell me. What are you all being so cryptic about."

Maya just shook her head. "Nope. Not going to do it."

He leaned over and kissed her. "Tell me now?"

She laughed. "Sorry, Babe...unfortunately, that little trick doesn't work both ways."

Zack sighed. "Come on! I don't see what the big deal is. I'm going to be measured for a tuxedo. Its not like I haven't been measured for one before."

"Actually, you won't be wearing one this time as there will be no tuxedos for this wedding. From what I remember, you'll be wearing a sand colored suit with an ocean bluish green or greenish blue shirt. And I know how much you hate ties, so you'll be happy to know you won't have to wear one of those either."

"Well, that's good news I guess."

"And you won't need shoes either. Everyone will be barefoot for it."

"That doesn't sound so bad either..." He paused. "But London might want to have a pedicurist on site before hand just to be sure."

Maya laughed. "She's already way ahead of you on that, and she's planning on having a team of them there. And everyone is getting a pair of flip flops to wear to the reception as a thank you from Cody and Bailey for coming to their wedding."

Zack shrugged. "Well, it doesn't sound as fancy, but I still don't see what the big deal is..."

She just smiled at him again. "Who said there was one?"

Zack still wasn't happy as he was pretty sure there was something he wasn't been told, but by the time Maya left to head for work, he still hadn't found out anything. Of course, as he began walking towards the subway station, he missed Maya watching him with the biggest grin on her face.

After working that afternoon, Maya finally returned back to the Tipton at close to 6:30 that evening. And when she opened the door to their suite, she was surprised to see Zack sitting on the couch with his arms crossed just glaring at her.

The kind of caught her off guard. "Hey, Babe..."

Zack just kept glaring at her. "Don't 'Hey, Babe' me! You knew what was about to happen and didn't tell me!'

Once she remembered how he had spent his afternoon, she began laughing. "I see you enjoyed Arturo taking your measurements as much as Cody did..."

"Enjoyed it? I've never been more uncomfortable before in my whole life! I was violated!"

"Oh, settle down. I saw how uncomfortable he made Cody, so I asked him to mess with you too." She grinned. "And don't forget, you did say that we would still pull some pranks to prove that we hadn't lost our touch..." Maya laughed again. "Well, I just did, but I chose you to be the one I pulled it on..."

_New Haven_

On that same Friday afternoon, Bailey and Gertie were hanging around the new Berkeley game room while Cody and Tapeworm got in their afternoon workout. And while the explored all of the new additions, they stopped to play a game of darts together. While they were throwing, they were challenged to a game by two of the college's new freshmen. But quickly, they realized the two guys were more interested in flirting with two older college women than really playing a game. So, rolling her eyes, Bailey showed them her engagement ring and told them she was getting married the next summer. When they turned their attention to Gertie, she held up her hand too to show them a ring as well. Realizing they were barking up the wrong trees, the two guys immediately left to move on to other girls. But Bailey turned to Gertie and smiled.

"What is that on your finger?"

Gertie smiled back. "Howie bought me a promise ring for my birthday..."

Bailey pulled her in for a hug. "Congratulations!" She pulled back and teased her. "Well, I guess we all know what the next step is, don't we?"

Gertie laughed. "Yeah, but this is good enough for me right now..." She paused. "Though, my thinking that it would keep the wolves at bay seems to have been misguided..."

"Don't worry about it. Just show them the ring, and most will back off. And if that doesn't work, we still have the mace on our key chains. And if that doesn't work, a swift knee to their groins should do the trick..."

Gertie laughed again. "True..." She shook her head. "Is it just me though, or do this years freshmen look like babies. Did we look that young our freshmen years?"

Bailey shrugged. "Probably..." She paused. "Though, it does blow my mind that next year, that will be my youngest sister, Amy. I remember when she was born, and she'll start college next fall..."

"I know what you mean. My little brother is a freshman at Penn this year. I still have trouble believing he's already in college. Speaking of your sister and Ivy League schools, has she chose a school yet?"

Bailey shook her head. "Not yet. I think she is basking in them fighting over her right now. I don't think she's in any hurry to make a decision yet."

After they finished their game, they began walking around again and noticed the two would be lotharios were now talking to two girls who seemed enthralled by what they were saying and constantly giggled.

"Please tell me we we didn't act that stupid when we were freshmen..."

Gertie shook her head. "I sure hope not. Seeing that makes me even more grateful that we already have the guys we want to spend the rest of our lives with. And I'm grateful that neither Howie or Cody would ever act like those too..."

"You and me both. All I know is I have no desire to deal with any more jerks this year..."

_To be Continued..._

**AN: I know I promised the return of old characters in Season 4. So far, we've seen the return of Kirby. In the new few chapters, we'll see the return of two more - one beloved and the other not so much.**


	10. Birthday Surprises

_Episode 10_

_"Birthday Surprises"_

_I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did._

_Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them._

_Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves._

_And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so..._

_New Haven_

As the next several weeks passed by, classes were officially back in the full swing of things. Everyone on campus had either settled back into their old, usual routines or established new ones they hoped would yield better results. But it wasn't like they really had much of a choice. At Yale, there was no adjustment period where everyone was able to ease themselves back into the flow of being back in school. Rather, every student on campus was expected to be at the top of their games as soon as classes began again. And they had to because there would be no slowing down until reading week with the exceptions of the three day fall break and week long Thanksgiving break. And even then, most students on campus had to use their breaks catching up on school work they had fallen behind on. While most students had previous years to prepare themselves for this, the poor freshmen and transfer students often found themselves awestruck and susceptible to freak outs. And they of all people looked forward to the reprises that the weekends brought. Not that others didn't, but the newer students latched on them like a life preserver in a storm.

Even though they were now finally seniors, Bailey, Cody, Tapeworm and Gertie quickly adjusted back to their old work habits and seamlessly settled back into their usual routines. By the Friday of the third week of September, this was especially true of Cody and Bailey. By then, they had a good number of experiments in progress for their Biology projects, and they had already made good progress in writing their EP&E papers. On that afternoon about four o'clock, Cody and Bailey both found stopping points in their papers and wrapped up their writing for the day. After saving their work (naturally, to be on the safe side, to several different folders, a couple of flash drives and as attachments to emails sent to themselves and each other), they smiled at each other as they realized it was time for their Friday afternoon chores. But before they could begin them, they heard a knock at the door to their room. Cody answered it, and they both found Master Chun standing there smiling at them.

Bailey smiled back at him. "Well, well...Master Chun. To what do we owe the honor of a personal visit from you this afternoon?"

He stepped inside their suite and closed the door behind him. "Actually, I'm just needed to stop by for a few seconds. Before classes started, you two volunteered to be tutors for Berkeley residents in organic chemistry if I needed them. So far this semester, I haven't had need to call in that favor yet, but circumstance are forcing me to now. I've had a couple more students stop by my office today asking for help, and all of my other tutors have full schedules. I'm in a bind here, and I was hoping you two were still willing to help out..."

Cody nodded. "Of course. I mean, as long as they don't try to monopolize what free time we do have, we'd be happy too."

"You two don't have any idea how much I appreciate this. I'll give them calls and have them come meet you guys up here. I'll leave it to you all to arrange times that will work for everyone. And if they don't end up showing up, just let me know. I know you guys are busy enough without wasting any more of your time." Master Chun paused and grinned "Just remember not to schedule anything for Thursdays at six though. You two will be helping out your college on the ping pong tables of battle then..."

Bailey laughed. "We'll make sure we don't."

"Good. Again, thank you both for helping out with this..." He paused again before laughing. "I would say this would look good on your medical school applications, but I think we all know that isn't necessary any more." He teased them. "And even though you have sold your souls to the evil empire, I think this shows there may still be hope for you two after all..."

She kept laughing. "Thanks...I think. Anyways, we'll always be loyal to Yale, so anyway way can help it out, we will. Just make sure you tell them to come up before seven thirty tonight, and we'll work something out. Any time after that, and we won't be here as Cody and I are heading out for a date night tonight."

"I'll make sure to tell them that. I should go call them right now then, so I'll see you two later." He paused and grinned again. "And Cody? Quit making the rest of us guys around here look bad. I know you're not actually married yet, but if my wife found out you two were still going out on date nights, I'd never hear the end of it..."

With that, Master Chun headed out, and Cody and Bailey were able to turn their focus back to doing their regularly scheduled Friday afternoon housekeeping tasks. While Cody busied himself with gathering up their trash and taking it to the trash shoot, cleaning their kitchenette area, and then beginning to clean their bathroom, Bailey dusted, vacuumed and straightened up their suite before beginning to sort their laundry so they could do it the next morning. And as both were in the middle of their final tasks, they heard another knock at their door. Both looked over at each other and shrugged before Bailey headed over to open it. Well, she kind of had to as Cody still had on his yellow latex cleaning gloves. And when Bailey did open it, she saw the tiniest woman she had ever seen standing next to a mountain of a man.

Seeing the odd couple in front of her, she was taken aback. "Can I help you?"

The petite girl began speaking very rapidly in an extremely high pitched voice. "I sure hope so! My name is Trixie, and Master Chun told me I might be able to find an organic chemistry tutor here. I'm looking for Cody Martin..."

Cody walked over next to Bailey. "I'm Cody Martin." He paused as seeing the hulk standing next to her. "Are you both in need tutoring?"

Trixie began giggling before once again speaking as fast as she could. "Oh, no, I'm just the one who needs a tutor. This is my boyfriend, Ox. Once he heard that my potential tutor was another guy, he wanted to come with me to meet you himself..." Cody looked up at the big man who was just glaring at him as Trixie continued. "He's the starting offensive tackle on Yale's football team, and scouts think he might be able to play in the NFL some day." She giggled again. "I think he wanted to make sure you knew who he was in case you got any bright ideas..."

Cody could only nod. "I see..." He gestured to Bailey. "Well, this is my FIANCEE, Bailey. And as for tutoring, I have available Tuesdays and Thursdays in the early afternoons. Do those days and times work for you?"

She smiled. "Those will work perfectly! Next Tuesday then at say two o'clock?"

"Yeah, that should work just fine..."

Ox finally spoke up as he continued to glare at Cody. "If you don't mind, I would rather you two use one of the study rooms down in the basement of the library. I have my team tutoring sessions down there at the same time, and I would prefer to be able to keep an eye on you..."

Cody held up his hands. "Consider it done!"

Trixie grinned at him again. "Good! I'll see you on Tuesday! Come on, Oxie...lets go!"

And with that, Trixie seemed to skip away as Ox lumbered behind her. After he closed the door, Cody just shook his head wondering what he just got himself into when Bailey busted out laughing.

"Looks like you're going to have fun with that, Sweetie..."

He sighed. "It should definitely be interesting..." He paused. "Bails, what is it with guys named after very large animals and their seeming disliking of me? I've never met that Ox guy before, and he was looking at me like I just insulted his mother before kicking his dog..."

She kept laughing. "I don't know, Cody."

"Maybe I should get a nickname like that myself..."

Bailey leaned in and kissed his cheek. "You already do. You're my Cody Bear..."

Cody smiled. "That's true...And bears are a lot more fearsome and deadly than either oxen or moose."

She wrapper her arms around his waist. "And a lot more cuddly." But, she couldn't help herself and started laughing again. "Okay, enough about that guy, what about her? I mean, she's tiny enough that if you add some wings to her, you could call her Tinkerbell. And if not that, it wouldn't surprise me to see her in the gymnastics competition at the next summer Olympics..."

He couldn't help but to laugh too. "Yeah, I could definitely see that. Those two do make quite the odd couple. Instead of Beauty and the Beast, more like Munchkin and the Mountain..."

"Or the Elf and the Elephant. And was it just me, or did she sort of remind you of someone else we know?"

Cody grinned. "Are you referring to the fact that if I had closed my eyes, I could have swore I was talking to Addison after she had followed up one of her sugar binges by inhaling all of the helium out of a balloon?"

"Yes! That's exactly what she reminded me of!"

But they didn't have time to dilly dally and keep making jokes as they needed to finish their chores. And a half hour later, they were both done and had all of their clothes sorted and a sparkling clean bathroom to boot. Of course, that left Cody with a real dilemma...well, one for him anyways.

"Bails, after cleaning the bathroom, I'm so grimy I need another shower. But if I take a shower, the bathroom won't be perfectly clean any more..."

She laughed. "Well, isn't it about time for you and Tapeworm to head down to the gym again? Why don't you wait to shower again until you get back from doing that..." She grinned. "And then we can use the tub together before we head out for our date night..."

He couldn't help but smile at her idea. "Well, when you put it like that, I don't mind getting it a little bit dirty..." He was about to pull her into his arms and kiss her when he stopped himself. "I should probably take these gloves off first..."

Bailey grinned. "No, keep them on..."

Cody just gave her a look. "You sure? I did just get finished scrubbing our toilet while wearing them..."

She paused before nodded. "Yeah, lose 'em..."

He did and was about to finally pull her in close when they were interrupted by another knock at their door. Both could only sigh at the disturbance, but they found Gertie and Tapeworm standing there. So, Cody quickly went to change into his workout clothes before the guys headed to the gym downstairs. And once they were gone, the ladies just crashed back onto the futon to take it easy. Gertie sighed and turned to Bailey.

"Is it fall break yet?"

Bailey smiled at her. "In need of a few days off already?"

"Oh yeah. I knew this semester was going to be a rough one, but I'm just starting to discover just how bad its going to be. I thought setting it up to have an easier final semester would be worth the hell of this semester, but I'm starting to second guess that. I have three really killer classes that could end up being my demise, so I'm glad I've already been accepted to grad school. If I can just make it all the way through to winter break, it will be another Christmas miracle..."

Bailey laughed. "Well, just keep thinking of how great next semester will be, and you'll get through this one. The finish line is now in sight for all of us, so it isn't the time to get senioritis..."

"I know. Of course, seeing the guys head down to work out makes me feel even worse. I feel like I should be doing something too. I know they say exercise is a good stress reliever, so maybe they have the right idea? I'd love to have something to make these next three months easier if it all possible..."

Bailey paused to think. "Well, they are offering some free classes downstairs in the new fitness studio. From the sign I saw earlier, I think they have Pilates on Monday, Wednesday and Friday evenings and a self defense class on Tuesdays and Thursdays. The Pilates will help you calm down, and the self defense will help you let out the stress you do have. Besides, Maya's been taking those kind of classes for over a year now, and she says they are very therapeutic as well as teaching her how to kick some serious butt."

Gertie nodded. "That does sound like a good idea..." She paused. "Would you do them with me?"

"Of course I will. And I bet we could talk the guys into doing their workouts while we're in those classes. It actually sounds like fun."

Gertie smiled. "You're the best, Bailey..." She paused again. "We'll start next week. But right now, I just want to sit here and do nothing until the guys get back. I'm exhausted..."

"Yeah, I know the feeling. Spending all day doing nothing but sitting and writing a paper can wear you out without you even realizing it."

"How are yours and Cody's papers coming along anyways?"

Bailey grinned. "Really well actually. Cody and I are both well ahead of the schedules we set for ourselves. I'm on page 28 of mine, and he's finishing up his 27th page. We should definitely have finished rough drafts ready to turn in for review just after fall break."

Gertie shook her head and sighed. "And then you guys will have Fridays off to do nothing. That would be so nice..."

"Hardly, once we turn those in, then we'll be spending three days a week up on Science Hill. We keep coming up with other experiments we want to include as part of our project, but at some point, we're going to have to cut ourselves off. On Monday, we even headed back up there after dinner and didn't get home until almost midnight."

"Well, something tells me you guys won't be getting much work done next Tuesday. That is Cody's birthday I believe..."

Bailey nodded. "Yeah, but he doesn't want to make a big deal about it since its in the middle of the week."

Gertie laughed. "But its his 21st birthday! He's the last one of us to hit that milestone, and you only turn 21 once..."

Bailey shrugged. "Well, yeah, but neither he or I have any inclination to drink. I mean...we discovered we like champagne over the summer, but we have no real desire to try much of anything else..."

"So, are you two going to do anything at all to celebrate it?"

"Of course we are. We're going out to dinner that night and maybe go see a movie afterwards. You know celebrate it but keep it low key."

Gertie grinned. "What if I had another suggestion for that evening...one I think you both would enjoy?"

Bailey just looked at her. "I'm listening..."

Gertie told her about what she and Tapeworm had discovered the other night, and Bailey could only laugh. "I admit - I do like the sound of that. It could be a lot of fun."

"Especially with the level of competition we have around here at Yale."

"Tell you what. How about we meet you two there about nine o'clock that night? Would you two mind getting there early and saving us a table?"

"Consider it done..." Gertie grinned before she paused and sighed. "Speaking of having a night out to celebrate, am I the only one getting a little worried about what those have in mind for our Halloween costumes this year?"

Bailey sighed too. "No, you're not. In fact, every time I bring up the subject to Cody, he just gets this big grin on his face before letting out an evil little laugh. I've moved past worried to flat out scared about what he has planned..."

"Same here. The other day, Howie asked me if my hair was long enough to curl up into buns on the sides. I have a bad feeling I know what he's thinking..."

Bailey shook her head. "What is it with guys and Princess Leia? I think Cody had the same idea two years ago..." Both looked at each other, rolled their eyes and began laughing. "The gold bikini..."

"Well, if that's what Howie has in mind, he can just forget about it! No thank you! No way I would go to that party dressed like that!"

"I don't blame you one bit. I wouldn't go out in public dressed like that either. In fact..." But before Bailey could finish her thought, they were interrupted by yet another knock at the door. "Now who could that be? Seems like our room has been the place to come to this afternoon..."

Bailey got up to answer it and found some guy she had never seen before standing there. "Can I help you?"

"Ummm...yeah. I was looking for Bailey Pickett. Would that happen to be you?"

She paused. "It could be. Who's asking?"

"I'm Th...ummm...Robert, but most people call me Rob..." He paused waiting for Bailey to say something. But when she didn't, he just continued. "Anyways, Master Chun told me you were willing to tutor other people here in Berkeley in organic chemistry. That class is starting to kick my butt, and I really could use all the help I can get. So, would you tutor me?"

Bailey just nodded. "Yeah, I did tell Master Chun I would help out. Alright, Tuesday and Thursday afternoons are what I have to offer. That's the only time I really have to help out without it encroaching on my own studies."

He nodded. "That works just fine for me. Next Tuesday afternoon then?"

Bailey paused as she remembered something and shook her head. "Actually, I can't that day as I have to go pick up a special birthday present that afternoon. But I can on Thursday. Does two o'clock work for you?

He smiled. "That's perfect. Should I just meet you here then?"

Since Cody was going to be in one of the study rooms in the library, Bailey figured that would be a good place too. "Nah, I'll reserve one of the study rooms down in the basement of the library. I see you down there on Thursday."

Rob just nodded, and headed off. After Bailey closed the door, Gertie looked up at her.

"What was that all about?"

"Oh, Cody and I told Master Chun we'd help out and tutor people for organic chem..." She paused and laughed. "You should have seen the girl Cody's tutoring. You remember my friend Addison from last spring break?"

"The one who would talk real fast if she had too much sugar?"

Bailey nodded. "That's her. Picture her about a half foot shorter with a really high pitched voice..."

"Whoa..." Gertie shrugged. "Well, maybe that guy there will remind you and Cody of someone too?"

"Well, he doesn't remind me of anyone I know. And you'd have to ask Cody if he looked familiar to him..."

_Boston_

On the Tuesday of the following week, Maya's alarm went off a little after six that morning, and she dragged herself out of bed. As she shuffled off to the shower, Maya had to remind herself that she only had about an hour before she had to be at the subway stop and not to just stand under the hot water no matter how good it felt. So, she quickly showered, threw on some clothes and pulled her hair back into a pony tail so she wouldn't have to worry about styling it that morning. After checking herself out in the mirror and being satisfied with what she saw, Maya headed out to the kitchen to fix herself a bowl of cereal. Unfortunately, she was still half asleep and her mind was still in the process of clearing out the cobwebs. But when she heard the unmistakable sound of the shower turning on again, she snapped back to reality. Getting up to investigate, she saw a light coming from underneath the bathroom door and shrugged her shoulders. Maya did find it a little strange that Zack was up already especially on that day of all days. But, she figured she'd find out why soon enough and returned to her bowl of Special K. About twenty minutes later, she was washing out her bowl and putting it in the dishwasher when Zack walked out of their bedroom wearing a pair of khakis, a white undershirt and a button up shirt that was neither buttoned up or tucked in. Maya smiled, walked over to him and gave him a kiss.

"Good morning and happy Birthday!"

He yawned before smiling back at her. "Thanks, Babe. Thanks to that kiss, its starting out as a happy one."

"Glad I could help then..."

"Guess I'll have to return the favor on your birthday on Friday."

She grinned at him. "Works for me. Just seems kind of weird that we're all finally going to be 21 by the end of this week..."

Zack was about to say something when they both heard a knock at their door of their suite. Both of them looked at each other in surprise. "Who could be knocking on our door at..." He checked the clock on the oven. "...6:55 in the morning?" He walked over to answer the door and found his mother standing there. And immediately, Carey pulled him into a tight hug.

"My baby boy is 21!"

He sighed and just let her hug him. "Mom..."

She pulled back and smiled. "Well, excuse me for wanting to stop by and wish you a happy birthday..."

"I really do appreciate it, but its still really early..."

Carey shrugged and kept smiling. "You're lucky I wasn't here about a half hour ago. I'll never forget that you were born at 6:30 in the morning. But I was delayed because I just got off the phone with Cody wishing him a happy birthday too..." She laughed. "Trust me. I've learned my lesson to always call him first because I'll know he'll actually answer. You, on the other hand, I knew would actually be here and unable to hang up on me if I came over here. Besides, I wanted to catch Cody before he and Bailey began their day today. I was a little surprised they they were already up and about to head down to breakfast..."

Zack rolled his eyes. "Well, what do you expect? Cody's always gotten up way earlier than I have. He was the one who was dragging me out of bed when we were kids. Besides, with all that time he's spent on the farm, I'm sure he's used to waking up at the crack of dawn..."

She laughed again. "Oh, I'm sure he is. Though, I am kind of surprised I didn't actually have to drag you out of bed this morning. Anyways, I was wondering if you two already had any plans for tonight yet. If not, I'd like to take you both out to dinner to celebrate."

Zack looked over at Maya who just nodded back at him. "I guess that should work, Mom. Since we both have to be up early again tomorrow, we weren't going to do anything really big tonight anyways. Instead, we're going to wait until we can celebrate both of our birthdays on Friday night."

Carey couldn't help but to sigh. "Speaking of which, I know you will both be 21 then, but its my responsibility as a parent to remind you both to be responsible with alcohol. I know the tradition is to go a little crazy on your 21st birthday, but I don't want you two to go overboard..."

He sighed. "We won't, Mom. We know better than that."

She paused and gave him a look. "Have you had alcohol before, Zack?"

Zack looked down to button his shirt so he could avoid making eye contact with his mother. "Well, we all did have a champagne toast on the boat. But, we were all celebrating the end of very busy and successful summers for all of us. But that's it. And to be fair, the drinking age is 18 in Mexico, so we weren't doing anything illegal..."

"Well, I guess all things considered, I can't be upset about that. I just want you both to be careful and responsible on Friday night. If you are planning on drinking again, please take a cab or the subway so that you won't be drinking and driving. Or if you don't want to do that, call me, and I'll come and pick you up myself. Will you two promise me that?"

Maya spoke up. "We promise, Ms. Martin. We'll be very responsible that night."

"Thank you. And I want you to remember that you two have both worked way too hard on your studies just to throw them away because of a night of binge drinking..."

Zack sighed again. "We won't, Mom, I promise. In case you haven't noticed, we've both grown up a lot in recent years. We know better than that."

"I sure hope so..."

Maya checked the clock on the oven again and grabbed her backpack. "I hate to run, but I really need to get going if I'm going to catch my train and make it to my first class on time." She walked over and kissed Zack's cheek goodbye. "Happy Birthday again, Babe. I'll see you later on for lunch."

Zack grabbed his backpack too. "Hold on, and I'll walk out with you."

Carey just looked at him surprised. "You're leaving the suite a little after seven AM when you don't have to be at work until 8:00? Is there something going on here that I missing?"

Zack just grinned. "Well, Mom, if I leave now, I'll have just enough time to stop at the Denny's down the street and get my free birthday grand slam breakfast!"

Carey just shook her head and laughed. "You may be 21 now and growing up on me, but somethings will never change..."

_New Haven_

That same evening, Cody and Bailey had headed out to the Union League Cafe, their favorite restaurant near campus, so they could celebrate his birthday in style. And, like they had on the boat the previous month, they did have a champagne toast to satisfy the tradition of at least having one drink on a person's 21st. That was going to be their limit as they had a full day of work in the lab waiting on them the next day. After finishing a delicious dinner, they began strolling down Chapel Street before turning down Temple Street. And when they got to the corner of Temple and Crown, Bailey stopped them.

"Ummm...Bails...the movie theater is on the next block down."

She smiled at him. "I know, but we're not going to see a movie tonight." She nodded at the building in front of them. "This is where we're going."

He looked up, read the sign above the door and was instantly confused. "Sweetie...Why are we going to the Black Bear Saloon?"

"Because Gertie, Tapeworm and I thought you might enjoy this place."

He just looked at her with confusion written all over his face. "You thought I would enjoy coming to a bar? Sweetie, I know I'm 21 now and all, but I thought we said we were limiting ourselves to just the one glass of champagne tonight. And I definitely have no desire to pull a Zack tonight..."

Bailey couldn't help but to laugh. "And none of us have any aspirations for you to do that. Cody, we're here because on Tuesdays, they have trivia nights. Groups of four can compete together versus other teams to try to win cash prizes. We all thought you might find that to be fun..."

"Trivia nights?" That caught Cody's attention, and he eyes lit up. "Well, I guess that could be fun. I mean...we haven't gotten to compete in a battle of brains against anyone since the mathlympics, and that was the summer before we started college. And even then, there wasn't the chance for us to win any money for it." He smiled at her. "You all we're right. This does sound like a lot of fun. But, no trying to ply me with any more drinks tonight. We need to have our minds sharp and clear if we have any expectations of winning!"

She laughed again. "I couldn't agree more, Dear..." She winked at him. "Besides, we need to be at the top of our games for more than just this..."

"What else are you talking about?"

Bailey leaned in and kissed him. "You'll find out later..."

So, they headed inside and met up with Gertie and Tapeworm who already had a table waiting for them. And there timing couldn't have been more perfect as the trivia competition was set to begin in five minutes. When their waitress brought them over a small dry erase board and marker, they were officially ready to play. And with relative ease, they were one of the three teams to make the finals of the first game, and by making the finals, they guaranteed themselves of making at least some money that night. After they successfully won the first game and waited for the second one to begin, Tapeworm just grinned as a small glass with a reddish liquid was placed in front of Cody.

"Happy 21st birthday, Man. In honor of our Boston roots, I had to buy you a Cape Codder tonight. And before you ask, its cranberry juice and vodka. Its your rite of passage to have at least one drink with your friends today..."

Cody sighed. "Well, I guess one more won't hurt me..." He looked down at the glass in front of him. "And, they do say cranberry juice is supposed to be very good for one's urinary tract." He picked up the glass and saluted everyone at the table. "Cheers!"

But he made it clear that that was going to be his limit for the night. Everyone else agreed because, as Cody had said, if they were planning on winning the big cash prize at the end of the night, they all needed to be able to think clearly. And he was right. By the time they all called it a night and left the saloon, they were all walking out with almost an extra three hundred dollars a piece in their pockets. And as they began walking back to their dorm, Cody had to grin.

"Thanks, Guys. That actually was a lot of fun. I glad you guys suggested it."

Gertie laughed. "You're welcome. And while we had fun too, the other teams didn't seem too happy. But the owner of the saloon said if we came back next week to defend our crowns that any drinks would be on him..."

Tapeworm grinned as he just kept counting his new found wealth. "Hey, if it keeps making me money to come back here, I have no qualms about us making this a weekly tradition..."

Once they got back to their room, Cody was about ready to call it a night when Bailey just smiled at him.

"Are you sure about that? I have one more present for you to open up..."

He looked at her. "You do?"

"Uh huh..." She went to their other closet to retrieve the gift she had hidden in there. "Now, this isn't like the other ones I got you because while its for you its not specifically for you..."

Cody was confused - until he opened the gift. But when he pulled out something made of silk, satin and lace from the box and saw Bailey winking at him, he couldn't help but to laugh. "You know...sleep is highly overrated!"

Unfortunately, the next day brought with it the return to the real world. And like Bailey had said, they had to be up on Science Hill early that morning. And they put in another long and exhausting day in the lab. In fact, it was getting to the point where both of them were enjoying their Tuesdays and Thursdays as they were breaks from their senior projects. By the time Thursday came around, both were glad they had run into Master Chun that morning or else they would have forgotten all about their first tutoring sessions that afternoon. Of course, he also reminded them of their first ping pong match that afternoon too. As they sat at their table in the dining room having breakfast, Cody sighed.

"That would have been bad if we had forgotten to show up to our tutoring sessions today. I just hope Trixie understands that I'll have to end our study session by 5:00 at the latest. I want to give us plenty of time to get over to Payne Whitney Gym before our match at 6:00."

"Same here. This Rob kid will just have to understand that too. Like I told him when he first stopped by here - if he wants my help, it will have to be on my schedule..."

And by four thirty that afternoon, Cody and Trixie were beginning to wind down their session, but Bailey just sat in her study room all alone as Rob had yet to show up for theirs. By then, she was past being just annoyed, but thankfully, she had brought her laptop with her. So with some time to waste, she went ahead and did some research the topic for the group project she and Cody had discussed for their food class. So, even though she had been stood up for her tutoring session, it hadn't been a complete and total waste of her time. At a quarter till five, Cody stopped by her study room to see if she was ready to head back to their room, but he paused when he saw she was all alone in the room.

"You two done already?"

Bailey looked up at him and sighed. "Nope. That Rob kid never showed up to get started..."

"Sorry, Sweetie. That sucks..."

She just shrugged. "It could be worse I guess. I was able to get some work done for our food group project. I'll show you what I found later, but we need to get moving so we can go change for our match." She began gathering up all of her things into her backpack and laptop bag when the door to the study room suddenly swung open again. Rob strutted inside the room with a huge grin on his face.

"Sorry, I'm late, but I got talked into a game of ultimate out on Cross Campus. Don't worry though, I lead my team to victory. But, I'm ready to get to work now though!"

Bailey just glared at him. "Well, I'm not! We have an intramural match to get to! Besides, I hardly think playing ultimate is a valid reason to skip out of your obligations when you knew we had an appointment!"

Rob looked into the room and saw Cody standing there. "We? I didn't know you were tutoring someone else too."

She turned her attention to finishing packing up her stuff. "I'm not. That's my fiance and roommate, Cody. We were both supposed to be tutoring people today. Unlike me, his person seemed to have enough manners and courtesy to actually show up..."

Rob gave her a funny look. "But I thought I saw another girl in your room last week. I thought she was your roommate..."

"Nope!" Bailey glared at him again. "Because I gave my word to Master Chun, I will give you one more chance to be here on time next Tuesday. If you are even a single second late, you're going to have to find yourself another tutor! I have my own life and studies to worry about without having to deal with someone wasting my time!"

He backed away from her and just nodded. "Yes, of course. I truly am sorry, and it won't happen again. I will be on time Tuesday, I promise. My next exam in organic is the Friday after fall break. I did alright on the first one, but this new material is kicking my butt. I need all the help I can get..." He paused and just looked at them both. "Wait a minute...aren't the two of you in my psychology of food class too?"

Bailey grabbed her things and headed for the door. "Yes, we are in the class, and lucky for you, I was able to spend the time I had here doing research for Cody and I's final project in there. But right now, we have to get going..."

And with that, she grabbed Cody's arm and pretty much pulled him out of the study room. As they walked through the tunnel back over to Berkeley North, Cody turned to Bailey.

"You okay, Sweetie?"

She sighed. "Yeah, I'm just a little ticked off right now."

He smiled at her. "Well, I'm glad you're on my team, Bails. With you this upset, I feel sorry for the other team with you smashing aces at them today..."

Bailey couldn't help it but to laugh. "Yeah, that might get kind of ugly..."

Cody laughed too. "Remind me to take our first aid kit with us just in case..."

She stopped them and leaned over and kissed him. "Thanks, Honey. You always know just how to make me feel better."

"That's my job." He paused. "So that was Rob, huh? I don't envy him with how rough you're going to be on him next week either..." He paused and shook his head. "You know, for some reason, he seems really familiar to me, but for the life of me, I can't figure out why..."

Back in the study room, Rob was still getting over the chewing out that Bailey had just given him. "Well, excuse me for being a little bit late..." He sat down in a chair and began shaking his head. "My Mom was wrong, this place does suck as bad as Princeton did..." He paused and shook his head again. "And why did that guy with her look so familiar? I mean...what kind of name is Cody anyways? The only other person I've ever known with that name was..." He stopped mid sentence and began laughing as realization dawned on him. "...Nerd Boy! That was Martin!" He just began shaking his head again with a big grin on his face. "Maybe I can have some fun around here after all..."

_Boston_

On Friday night, Maya became the last one to officially turn twenty-one, and she and Zack finally got to celebrate both of their birthdays. The plan for the evening was to head out for a nice dinner somewhere before heading to a club just down the street from the Tipton to do some dancing. And they weren't going to be alone that evening as Amanda and Jake would be joining them. While they were up to having some fun too, they also wanted to make sure Zack and Maya had someone to keep an eye of them and make sure they didn't do anything stupid. So after a couple of drinks themselves, Amanda and Jake cut themselves off so that at least two people would still be sober at the end of the night. And it turns out that that was a really good idea as Zack and Maya were quickly getting to the the point where neither was feeling any pain.

Amanda could only shake her head at Zack and laugh. "And here I thought you said you had no desire to ever do this again..."

Zack just gave her a look. "I don't! I'm nowhere near as bad as I was that night! For instance, I can rememebr everything that's happened to me tonight. Then, I don't remember getting from the party back to Cody's room." Of course, he then proceeded to hiccup.

"Uh huh...Well, don't look to me if you end up yacking tonight. You may be my friend and future MBA classmate and all, but that's where I draw the line..."

He began laughing. "No worries there. I definitely don't see me throwing up tonight..." He glanced over at Maya. "...now, she may be another story."

Maya rolled her eyes at him. "Don't look at me! I feel just fine!" Of course, she couldn't help but to hiccup as well.

"Riiiiight. Just remember, Babe - you're a lot smaller than I am, and this is your first time drinking. That means your tolerance ain't nothing..."

She smirked at him. "You think so, huh? Care to make a little bet then? I guarantee that you will lose your dinner before I do!"

Zack smirked back at her. "Alright, deal! Name your terms!"

"Oh, I will, and it won't be something as stupid as a dollar!" Maya paused and tried to think, but her head was getting fuzzy. But through the fog, and idea came to her. "I got it! No matter how they feel in the morning, the loser has get the winner breakfast!"

"Sounds good to me!" He grinned. "I like my eggs scrambled and my bacon crisp..."

Maya grinned right back at him. "Yeah, well I prefer my pancakes chocolate chipped and my toast with strawberry jam..."

As those two shook on their bet, Jake just shook his head and laughed. "If you two keep going the way you are, breakfast will be the last thing on your minds in the morning. One, odds are you won't be awake before noon. Two, when you do finally wake up, the mere thought of food will make you nauseous."

The night continued on, and as it got close to two in the morning, Zack and Maya were both sitting at their table barely holding on to consciousness. Shaking her head again, Amanda looked over at Jake.

"I think they've had enough for tonight. I'm giving them both less than twenty minutes before they both finally pass out."

He nodded. "I think you're right. You get Maya up on her feet, and I'll get Zack. Something tells me we're going to be used as crutches all the way back to the Tipton."

"Better that than having to carry them. Fortunately, its only for a couple of blocks down the street..."

After getting Zack and Maya up on their feet, they guided them out the front door and out into the fresh air hoping it would help some. And for the most part, the walk back to the hotel wasn't as bad as it couldn't have been as neither Zack nor Maya fell down and hurt themselves. But when they got back to the Tipton, Amanda decided to take them in through the back way so no one would see them stumbling through the lobby drunk. And that turned out to be a really good idea. When they got to the loading dock, both Zack and Maya both stopped as they felt their stomachs beginning to churn. At the same time, they both ran over to the dumpster and unleashed the demons.

Jake just shook his head and laughed again. "I'd call that a tie, wouldn't you?"

Amanda laughed too. "I'd say so...though, in the morning, I think they're both going to feel like losers..."

Once both Zack and Maya had emptied their stomachs a second time, Amanda and Jake helped them up to their suite where it took Zack several minutes to finally get the key into the lock. And once inside, he and Maya stumbled their way over to the couch. Both needed to sit down immediately as their heads were beginning to spin. Fortunately, that didn't last long - mainly because they both passed out cold within a few minutes.

Amanda shook her head. "Oh, I'm going to give them both pure hell when I talk to them tomorrow..." She turned to Jake. "Come on, lets get out of here. I don't want to be here in case they wake up and have to throw up again."

The next morning, Zack and Maya both woke up on the couch feeling like death warmed over. As they tried to get up, they felt sore all over and their stomachs felt even worse. Zack could only groan.

"Okay, I know I said it last time, but I am never going to do that again. And I mean it this time..."

Maya rubbed her eyes and sighed. "That goes double for me..."

"And Jake was right, if I tried to eat right now, I would throw up again..."

"Same here. I won't hold you to our bet then."

Zack turned to look at her. "What do you mean? I won!"

Maya laughed. "As I recall, we both blew chunks at the same time. And after the way we both must look and feel this morning, I think its safe to say nobody won."

He sighed. "You can say that again...I think I might go hop in the shower. Maybe the hot water will stop the throbbing headache I have..."

"Well, if it works, you better not waste all the hot water again..."

He laughed. "If it does work, it will take a bulldozer to get me out of there..."

She smiled and teased him. "Remember what I can do to your knee if you do..."

Zack was about to say something when there was a knock at the door. "Great. Its probably Mom. I definitely would rather her not see us like this. I can only imagine the look on her face and the lecture we're about to get..."

Sighing, he opened the door, but instead of seeing his Mom, he saw a blonde blur immediately thrown two arms around his neck and pull him in for a hug.

"Zack!"

He blinked trying to place the voice when it finally dawned on him who it was. He pulled back and looked at her in shock. "Maddie?"

_To be Continued..._

**AN: I told you there would be two returns of old characters, and here they are. As an aside, if anyone is in the mood to watch a really strange but really good movie, _Zombieland_ is on FX next Wednesday night. And I'm not saying its a good movie just because the lovely Miss Emma Stone is in it - but it doesn't hurt lol**_  
_


	11. Somebody Has a Secret

_Episode 11_

_"Somebody Has a Secret"_

_I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did._

_Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them._

_Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves._

_And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so..._

_Boston_

When Zack was finally able to pull back form her embrace, he just stared at his old friend in complete and utter surprise. Maddie showing up on his doorstep was the last thing that he could have ever expected to have happened at that moment. One his initial surprise faded some, he finally got to take a good look at her. Sure, she was several years older than the last time he had seen her and had definitely matured some, but she still basically looked exactly like the same young woman that he once harbored a major crush. Of course, that thought almost made him chuckle out loud as he though of the irony of it. In his whole life, Maddie was one of only two girls he had actually deemed worth to chase after. And the other? Well, she was sitting on the couch right behind him in the suite they now shared together. But right then, the combination of shock and his hangover was preventing him from being able to say anything.

But once he was able to think more clearly, several thoughts crossed his mind The last time he had actually seen Maddie had been at Moseby's wedding close to three years prior. And in that time, enough had happened to him that he had pretty much completely forgotten all about her. They hadn't really kept in touch though he did hear bits and pieces about her from London, Cody and Bailey. In fact, the last he had heard, Maddie was now living on the west coast with her on again off again and seemingly back on again boyfriend Trevor. He briefly wondered if he was somewhere around too when he realized Maddie was now looking at him funny.

"Zack? Are you okay?"

That seemed to do the trick, and he was able to find his voice again. "Maddie? What are you doing here?"

She just smiled at him. "Oh, I just decided to come back to Boston. I kind of decided it had been way too long since I'd been home, so here I am! Plus, I'm in between jobs right now and figured it was high time for me to come see some of my old friends I hadn't seen in a while..."

"Well, its good to see you again..." He looked behind her. "Is Trevor here with you?"

A look came over Maddie's face that Zack couldn't figure out, but she quickly hid it with another smile. "No, its just me this time. I actually didn't know you were still here at the hotel until London told me. I'm staying with her up in her penthouse, and she happened to mentioned how well you've been doing lately for yourself." She looked past him and saw Maya sitting on the couch. "And from what I understand, you have a new roommate as well..."

Zack turned around too as he remembered Maya again. "Oh course. Where are my manners? Maddie, this is my girlfriend, Maya. Maya, this is Maddie."

By then, Maya had gotten up off the couch and walked to the door herself to shake Maddie's hand. "Nice to meet you, Maddie."

Maddie smiled again. "The pleasure is all mine. Actually, I've been wanting to meet you for a long, long time now." She nudged Zack in the ribs and laughed. "I always wondered what kind of woman it would take to get this one here in a serious relationship. At first, I didn't believe everyone, but they kept telling me that it was true. And then when I heard that Zack had practically begged you to move in with him, I about passed out from shock. It seems you've pulled off the impossible somehow." She laughed. "You've gotta tell me what your secrets are..."

Maya laughed too. "Thanks...I think. But, it really wasn't all that difficult. Zack's had grown up and matured a lot in the past few years. The guy you see standing here now has come along way since I first met him our senior years of high school." She paused. "But, if I may ask, who has been telling you all of these things?"

"Oh, I've exchanged e-mails with London, Bailey and Cody pretty regularly for the past few years. They're the ones who have kept me filled in on what's going on with everyone around here."

Zack looked at her with a hurt expression on his face. "Speaking of which, how come you never kept in touch with me like you have everyone else?"

"Well, for one, I didn't know you're e-mail address or phone number. And two, you could have just as easily gotten mine from one them and sent me a message or called me every now and then. So, don't put it all on me..."

He paused. "True. So, how long are you back in town for?"

Maddie shrugged. "I don't know yet. Like I said, I'm in between jobs right, but London's been trying to get me to join her company in the PR department for over a year now. Now that I'm back on the market, I'm actually starting to give some serious thought to taking her up on it now..."

Zack grinned. "You should! You and I be working together. And with you there, it would be like the old days again with you, me, London and Moseby all in the same place again."

Maya spoke up confused. "It will?"

He turned back to her. "Yeah, Maddie used to work at the candy counter downstairs. She was always getting involved in our misadventures back in the day with London, Cody, Moseby and I."

Maya's eyes went wide. "That's why your name seemed so familiar to me! You helped Cody pull off that prank on Zack! The one with the ghost in Suite 613!"

Maddie shook her head and laughed. "I had almost completely forgotten about that. I think we were the first ones ever to turn the tables on Zack. Unfortunately, he paid us back in spades before and after that. When he was younger, Zack here was quite the little hellcat. He was always coming up with some scheme or another that Cody, London, Moseby and I got constantly getting dragged into..."

"Well, you'll be happy to know I got him good myself a few weeks ago. You see..." Maya quickly explained the set up she had arranged with Arturo.

Maddie busted out laughing again. "Oh, I think I would have paid to see that!"

"It really wasn't all that funny..."Zack sighed before smiling again. "But, if you join us at London Inns, we can all have more adventures like that again."

"Like I said, I'm thinking about it. Though, it would almost be worth it to see you and Moseby almost being friends these days. After what I saw around here years ago, that's almost as mind boggling to me as Zack being in a committed relationship..."

He rolled his eyes. "Well, he's actually my boss now. And like Maya said, I have grown up a lot. Besides, when were not around each other all the time, Moseby really isn't that bad. And with me being 21 now, he treats me more like an adult rather than as a child."

"Well, he should!" She shook her head. "Look at you...you're a full grown man now who will be graduating college next spring. The little boy that I remember moving into the Tipton and that I used to babysit is long gone! And you're taller than I am now! You have any idea how old that makes me feel?"

Zack laughed. "Yeah, the growth spurt finally kicked in during high school..."

Maya teased him. "Though, he still gets upset that Cody's lasted longer. Zack really hates the fact that he's 5'11 and Cody is 6'0..."

Maddie laughed. "And that makes me feel even older. I remember when Cody was a little boy too, and not only is he graduating from Yale next spring, but he's getting married next summer! And London tells me he and Bailey have been accepted to Harvard's medical school. It blows my mind how much those two little boys have really grown up..."

Zack had to laugh at that. "Well, if it makes you feel any better, Cody and Bailey finally getting married isn't going to really change anything. They basically are already. They're actually living together this year at Yale."

"Still...he's getting married before I am! And he's about five years away from being a doctor, and you're about three years away from getting your MBA!" Maddie just shook her head and sighed. "It seems like nothing around here is how I remember it being. Even London seems completely different now..."

"Because she is. She's really come a long way since we graduated high school. She still puts up her tough exterior, but she'll actually admit she cares about her friends now..."

"I know. She actually told me she missed me. I never thought I'd ever hear her say that. But...its good to finally be home..."

Maya smiled. "Well, welcome home then. And I hope you are here for a while because I'm sure you have some more good stories about this one here that I haven't heard yet..."

Maddie smiled back at her. "I'm sure I probably do. And I'd like to get to know the woman who won Zack's heart. Cody and Bailey have nothing but the best things to say about you, so I'm sure we'll get along just fine..."

"Me too."

"Well, how about we start right now? You two interested in going out to grab some breakfast with me?"

Zack and Maya just looked at each other and grimaced. "Could we do lunch instead? Right now, neither one of us is all that hungry..."

Maddie just gave him a look. "Zack not hungry? That's a first! I..." She paused as she finally caught a whiff of something. "Why does it smell like a brewery in here?"

He began hemming and hawing. "Well...Tuesday was my 21st birthday and yesterday was Maya's. So, last night, we kind of sort of...you know..."

Maddie laughed again as she finished his thought. "Tied one on. I understand you're lack of hunger now. I did the same thing on my 21st, and felt completely awful the entire next day. Well, a belated happy birthday to you both. And from what I remember from my own, you probably won't be up for lunch either. Tell you what. I'll head back up to the penthouse and order some room service. Later, if your stomachs ever get settled down by lunch time, you'll know where I'll be..."

"Sounds good to us. And if all else fails, we'll join you for dinner tonight if you want."

"Works for me. Well, I'll see you guys later." She paused. "And if I may suggest, Tylenol and lots and lots of water..."

Once Maddie left, Maya turned to Zack. "She seems nice enough. How come you've never really mentioned her to me before?"

_New Haven_

About that same time on Saturday morning, Cody and Bailey were just finishing up their laundry down in Berkeley College's new high tech laundry room after having already eaten breakfast. Of course, while the laundry facilities did have complimentary irons and ironing boards for the students to use, Cody much preferred to use the ones they already had up in their room. And while their college know offered complimentary detergent and fabric softer to its residents, Cody again declined to used them. Mainly because he preferred to use a brand that was hypoallergenic and wouldn't cause his allergies to flare up. But they were able to spend the time waiting on their dryers to finish by doing their homework for their two actual classes. And even when they finished up that, they still had some time to waste. So, Bailey showed Cody the research for their food class group project.

"You know, Cody, I really do think we have the perfect topic here. And Professor Brownell seems to agree with us..."

"I know. I was kind of surprised when he told us no one else had ever done it before..."

Bailey laughed. "Tell me about it! That about blew my mind too! I know we don't watch as much television as some people do, but ever time we do, it seems like we are bombarded with those commercials."

Cody could only nod. "I remember it was particularly bad when I was laid up recovering from my appendectomy. I thought Coke and Pepsi had covered every single area that could fight over, but I guess I was wrong..."

"Well, when all else fails, go for the one battlefield you know will get everyone's attention - gender. Who knew the can of worms Dr. Pepper was opening with those idiotic commercials for Dr. Pepper 10. Now, it seems like all of the soft drink companies are designing drinks or flavors to specifically pander to either men or women..."

"And that drink wasn't even that good to begin with..."

She teased him. "I wouldn't know...it wasn't targeted to my gender." After both laughed, Bailey showed Cody the research she had found already. "Now, it does look like there have already been a couple of studies done on this topic, but we can make it more localized. We can go to grocery stores to see how they are marketing them in New Haven plus call the local stations to see which ads are aired more often. Plus, we can set up some actual taste tests here on campus. We can offer one brand designed for women and one for men and see if those are the ones the genders actually choose."

"And we can do some blind taste tests so see which ones they actually prefer the taste of..."

"Good idea! I think we have enough of a idea to write up a proposal for our professor now. And the quicker we do, the better the chances that no one else will think of it. If we get in first, it will be ours."

"Well, why don't we put it on our to do this for tomorrow morning, and then we can submit it on Tuesday morning." He leaned in and kissed her cheek. "See, like I always said. Beauty and brains."

Bailey smiled at him. "Thank you, Sweetie. I..." But before she could continue, they heard the buzzers on all of their dryers begin to go off. She laughed. "Hold that thought, and I'll finish it while we begin folding everything..."

So, in unison, they began emptying their clothes out of the dryers into their laundry baskets. And working side, they began folding everything that Cody wouldn't iron when they got back up to their room. Thirty minutes later, everything was folded and placed back into their laundry baskets. And when they were done, Cody just turned to Bailey and smiled.

"Alright. Another thirty minutes of ironing, and we'll officially be done with our laundry for the week. By then, it will be close to eleven o'clock. What would you like to do with the rest of our Saturday?"

Bailey paused before a grin spread across her face. "Well, its only about a month away now. How about we go shopping for our Halloween costumes?"

He just shook his head. "Uh uh. I've already ordered our costumes, so no need for us to do that. They're being special made for us, so it will be a few more weeks before their ready. Besides, with the money we've made on trivia nights, I decided to go all out in honor of our senior years."

She just gave him a look. "Any hints as to what they will be?"

Cody just smiled. "Nope. I'm giving you the same notice you gave me last year."

Bailey sighed before she had an idea. She pulled Cody in close and gave him a long, passionate kiss. When she finally pulled back, she could tell his was completely off guard in a good way. "Does that give you in inclination to tell me now?"

He just smiled again. "Nope, but I love the methods you'll resort to to get information out of me. If my desire to keep this a surprise for you wasn't so high, that could have easily made me crumble..."

"Cody!"

He laughed. "But rest assured, Bails, keep doing that in the future, and I'll sing like a canary..."

She sighed again. "Will you at least tell me if they are going to be humorous or frightening or...?"

He wrapped his arm around her. "Actually, I'm going for humorously frightening...or frighteningly humorous. But before you resort to other avenues of trying to discover my secret, I'm the only one who knows what it is. I discussed several ideas with Tapeworm, but he doesn't know what I finally decided on. So, no asking Gertie to try to charm the information out of him..."

Bailey pouted. "This is completely unfair, Cody..."

Cody smiled again. "You remember what you told me not this last summer but the one before it?"

She just gave him a look. "What did I say?"

"You said good things come to good boys who are patient and wait. Well, Sweetie...be a good girl who is patient and waits, and good things will come to you too..."

Bailey rolled her eyes. "I should have know that would come back and bite me in the butt..."

He laughed. "I promise you'll love my ideas though. Now, what else would you like to do today?"

She paused. "Well, if that is out, I did hear the natural history museum was having a guest lecturer this afternoon that sounded pretty interesting. I believe the guy is a professor at NYU...I think his name is Geller or something like that."

"Sounds like fun to me then. Lets take our laundry upstairs then. The sooner we do, the sooner I'll get done ironing..." He paused and smiled at her. "But tonight, I do have another surprise for you. And I think you're going to love it..."

Bailey had to smiled. "Yeah? Well, I do like the sound of that. I love all of your surprises...even the ones you stubbornly still won't tell me about."

So, they grabbed their laundry baskets and began heading back upstairs. And as they did, Cody did decide to tease Bailey and dropping hints about their costumes that would both give her ideas as well as completely throw her off track. Eventually, Bailey caught on to what he was doing and took to bumping him with the laundry basket in her arms. By the time they got to their floor, both were bumping the other back and forth and laughing about it.

Of course, that was until they got back to their room and found a vase with a dozen roses sitting outside of their door.

"Cody! Is this part of your surprise for me? That was so sweet of you!"

Cody wasn't smiling though. "Ummm...Bails...those aren't from me. Remember, I only send you roses on Valentine's Day. I choose other flowers for other occasions."

Bailey looked at him for a minute. "That's right, you do..." She paused and then shrugged. "Well, whoever left these here must have put them outside of the wrong room. I'll just check the card and see who they are supposed to be for."

She reached down and grabbed the card and read it out loud. "I hope this in some small way makes up for my tardiness last week. Thank you again for the second chance you gave me, and I promise I won't let you down ever again. Besides, I would be a fool for not wanting to spend as much time with a bright and beautiful woman such as yourself as I can. Sincerely, Rob."

Bailey was surprised that he had sent her flowers, but when she saw Cody's face, she could immediately see that he was not happy at all.

_Boston_

Zack just looked at Maya as he tried to figure out how to answer her question. On one hand, he could follow Cody's advice and answer the question as honestly as possible with the whole truth. On the other hand, he could give her an abridged version and hope she would buy it. Instead, he went with option number three - try to bluff his way out of answering it all. So, he just smiled at her, but a nervous laugh escaped his mouth. "What are you talking about, Babe? I've told you all about Maddie before, haven't I?"

Maya wasn't going to let him off the hook that easily though. "Uh uh. Nope. You've never really talked about her all that much that I remember. You might have mentioned her name once or twice in passing, but that's it. And it isn't just you. Since I've known you, Cody, Bailey and London, I can't recall any of you bringing her name up in a conversation either. I'm just curious why you guys haven't if she was such a good friend to you all. I don't know anything about her. What's she like?"

He paused. "Well, Maddie's always been pretty cool. You know...she's just a genuinely nice and sweet girl..." He paused again. "...well, woman now I guess. And like I said, she was usually part of our adventures back in the day when she wasn't off at camp or off somewhere else..."

Maya stopped to think for a minute when the fog of her hangover finally cleared away. And that's when she finally put two and two together. "Wait a minute! Is she the one you used to have a major crush on when you and Cody used to live here back when you were kids?"

Zack sighed realizing he wasn't going to be able to talk himself out of this now. He looked at Maya and unfortunately let out another nervous laugh. "Maya...Babe...that was a long, long time ago. I was just a kid then who didn't know any better..."

She just gave him a look. "Oh? Is that so? She's the one I remember Cody mentioning that one time. So, she's the girl who used to work here who you had a thing for, huh?"

He mumbled under his breath. "Note to self – Kill Cody." He looked up at Maya again. "Yeah, that was her, but like I said – it was a long, long time ago. It was like a whole another life time ago. And – to be fair, it was well before I ever met you. You knew I had a past before I met you."

Maya sighed realizing he was right. "True, but how come you've never told me more about her then? Why keep it a secret from me?"

He shrugged. "The subject just never came up. I mean, she moved away several years ago to head out west. Last time I saw her was at Moseby's wedding, and that will be three years ago this New Year's Eve. Since then, I really haven't kept in touch with her, and I pretty much forgot about her." He paused. "Besides, I've had a lot happen to me since then that has kind of preoccupied my time..."

She paused. "Well, I guess that's true."

"It is. Since the last time I've seen her, I've gone from taking classes at a community college to looking ahead to grad school after I graduate. Plus, I have you back in my life now. With you, I don't have the need to think about other girls anymore."

"I can understand that, but I just never heard people talk about her all that much even back on the boat. And that brings up another question. How are are she and Bailey so close then? How do they know each other?"

"Well, Maddie did come to visit us on the boat once during our sophomore years. She and Bailey got to meet each other then, and they kind of bonded as they were both the targets of London's insults. Maddie even stayed in their cabin with them while she was there. I guess they stayed friends after that. And you have to remember how long ago this was. Cody and Bailey were not yet together the first time, and he was still in the midst of his six month plan to win her over."

"I guess that's been over six years then. I guess that is long enough for them to grow close." She paused. "So how come she never came back to the boat?"

Zack laughed. "Well, after what happened on her on her first visit, I seriously doubt she wanted to come back again. I mean – she almost got stuck marrying this pint sized prince. And if I hadn't stepped in and defeated the kid in the weirdest joust you'd ever see, she probably would have an unwilling princess right now..."

Maya raised her eyebrows. "Oh really?"

He sighed realizing that last part wasn't helping his argument. "Again – a long time ago, and again, all well before I met you or even knew you existed."

"I know, but I just don't like to think about things like that..." She shrugged. "Besides, it just seems weird to me that for someone that everyone was so close to that her name was hardly ever mentioned..."

Zack paused. "Well, I guess out of sight, out of mind would explain it, but that doesn't make the rest of us come off very good..."

"Its just I was there for a year, and by the way everyone talked, it was like she had never existed in your lives. And I guess I can understand why she didn't come back to visit again, but she didn't even show up for your graduation. I mean, supposedly, she was good friends with London, Bailey, Cody and you. I guess I just figured if you guys were all that tight that she would have. I mean, Arwin was your friend too and he showed up for it."

Zack shook his head. "I don't know, Maya. I guess I just never really thought about it like that before. I just figured she was off living her own life while we were all doing the same." He paused and began laughing. "Though, its probably good that she didn't show up for the prom. That could have been awkward..."

Maya looked at him funny. "Why would that have been awkward?"

Without thinking, he explained why. "Well, there was this misunderstanding between her and this guy she thought she was going to her prom with. Turns out he already had a date which essentially left her dateless for her own prom. Well, me being the kind of guy I am, I stepped in and danced with her that night. And she was so grateful for me doing that that she said she would return the favor and be my date at my prom." He still hadn't learned when to shut up and began laughing. "Can you imagine that? If she had showed up, I would have had two dates for it!"

She just glared at him and shook her head. "Oh, I seriously doubt you would have..."

Zack swallowed realizing he had just dug himself into a large hole. "Of course I wouldn't have...I would have just had you as a date. I would have had to let her down gently..."

"Uh huh..."

He pulled her in close. "Hey...who was it that came up with the idea of the secret prom that let us have one in the first place?"

Maya paused. "Well, you did..."

"Exactly. I came up with that so I could have an excuse to spend that evening holding you in my arms like this. Trust me, Maya. If Maddie had shown up, I would have told her my dance card for the night was already full..."

She looked at him hopefully. "Really?"

"Really. And if you still think you have anything to worry about from Maddie, then don't. She's one of the most honest goody goodies you'll ever meet. She would never try to cause any problems. Besides, she told you herself she was looking forward to getting to know you. I really think you two could end up being good friends."

"Maybe. I guess its possible. I mean, Bailey and I were never all that close in high school, but we're pretty good friends now."

"Exactly. Plus, if Maddie is here for any length of time, I'm sure you'll meet her boyfriend, Trevor."

"What's he like?"

"Well, he's ultra conservative which is funny because Maddie is ultra liberal..." He paused. "And some people say he looks a little bit like that Zac Efron guy, but I just don't the similarities..."

_New Haven_

As soon as he heard what that note on the flowers had said, Cody found himself clenching his fists and grinding his teeth. While the idea of some other guy sending his fiancee flowers did not sit well with him, he trusted Bailey. He knew he wasn't like Ox who looked at every other male on the planet as a threat. The real reason that Cody was upset was because of that Rob guy. Ever since he met him on the previous Tuesday, Cody couldn't shake the feeling that he knew him somehow. And his gut instinct was telling him there was something not on the up and up about him. So, the fact that he had sent Bailey flowers was causing his internal alarm to go to Def Com 5.

For her part, Bailey could tell Cody wasn't happy. But she thought it might have been due to jealousy. And for some reason, it made her remember a couple of years earlier when she about went crazy on that tall, blonde Swedish girl who was trying to flirt with Cody. Even though she trusted him, she couldn't help but let her jealousy get to her then. So, she decided to nip this in the bud before Cody had the chance to drop to the levels she had.

"Cody...Sweetie. This is not that big of a deal. I'm sure he's just trying to soothe things over after he royally screwed up last week. I don't want you to let this bother you..."

He shook his head and sighed. "I admit I don't like him sending you flowers, Bails, but that's not what's really getting to me. I just have this bad feeling about this Rob guy that I can't rationally explain. My instincts have sirens blaring about that I should be very wary of him."

Bailey sighed in relief realizing that it wasn't what she had feared. But when saw the look on his face, she knew this was really bothering Cody. "You still think you know him from somewhere, don't you?"

"I'm almost positive I do, Sweetheart. But for the life of me, I can't remember or figure out how."

Bailey paused. "Well, maybe it was like it was with Tapeworm? Maybe you knew him by a nickname?"

"Maybe..." Cody shook his head. "But if I did know him, wouldn't he have recognized me too? And if he did, why didn't he say anything?"

"I don't know..." She smiled at him. "...but, if it makes you feel any better, I have no desire to keep these flowers. They mean nothing to me, and I don't want them. Instead, why don't we drop them off over at the hospital and have them give them to a patient who doesn't have any?"

"Really? You would do that?" He shook his head. "Bails, I would never ask you to do that..."

She smiled at him again. "Of course I'll will. The only man I want sending me flowers...other than my Dad...is you, Cody." She kissed his cheek. "Besides, I don't want to give him the wrong idea. I'm yours and all yours. So, just keep remembering you that have absolutely nothing to worry about."

Cody smiled at her. "I know. Bails, I trust you completely. I try not to get jealous as I know your mine..." He paused and laughed. "Of course, we should be glad that it wasn't Trixie sending me flowers. If Ox had found out, you might have been a widow before we even got married..."

She laughed too. "Yeah, I get the feeling he would have gone ballistic. But, if he tried to get to you, he would have had to go through me first. I know I've only been taking those classes for a week, but I've learned a few things. I couldn't cripple him yet like Maya could, but no one tries to hurt my Cody Bear..." She paused and grinned at him. "But I also appreciate the fact that you didn't try to tell me what to do with those flowers. Some guys would have demanded their girlfriends throw them away immediately. I'm glad we have that level of trust between us."

He wrapper his arms around her waist. "Me too. But if someone ever did try to take you away from me, they'd have to kill me first. I lost you once, and it about destroyed me. I've vowed never to let that happen again. So, if this Rob guy has some ulterior motives, I'm going to nip it in the bud ASAP."

Bailey shook her head. "No, we'll nip it in the bud ASAP. But I'm sure this is probably all still nothing to worry about. I'm sure he's just trying to get on my good side because he knows one more screw up and I'm done with tutoring him."

"I hope so..." Cody sighed. "I just wish there was a way to find out if I actually know this Rob guy or not. That would answer so many questions..."

She stopped to think. "Well, maybe there is a way. He had to go to Master Chun to request a tutor, so maybe we can simply go ask him about Rob."

Cody smiled. "Like I said before. Brains and beauty - Bails, you really are the total package. Come on, lets head on down to his office right now..."

So after dropping the flowers and their laundry off in their room, they headed down to the first floor. And fortunately for them, Master Chun just happened to be in his office that morning. The knocked on his door before walking inside. And when he saw them, he smiled.

"Now, to what do I owe this pleasure this morning?"

The closed the door behind them before sitting down in the two chairs opposite of Master Chun's desk. Cody spoke up. "Actually, we're hoping you can help us out here. For some reason, the person you've asked Bailey to tutor seems really familiar to me. I was hoping you could give us some information on him so I can figure out why..."

Master Chun shrugged. "Let me see what I can do..." He headed over to his file cabinet and pulled out a file. "Of course, you do realize that some information is confidential, and I'm not a liberty to divulge it."

Bailey nodded. "Of course. We'd feel the same way if people asked about us."

He paused. "Its funny that you would say say that. Now that I remember, Rob did come and ask me about you two last Wednesday afternoon. He said he had something to drop off to you and forgot your room number. And he said he thought Cody looked familiar to him too and asked me about him..."

Cody looked over at Bailey before looking back at Master Chun. "Interesting. So, what can you tell us about him?"

"Well, he's a transfer student in this year from Princeton. To be honest, his record seems to be missing quite a lot of information, but that's pretty normal for someone who has very powerful connections. I think that's why he was able to get into some classes as a sophomore that usually only seniors can get into..."

Cody shook his head. "I hadn't thought of that before, but that does seem a little weird." He paused. "Do you know Where he is from originally?"

Master Chun checked his file again. "Well, he went to a boarding school in Georgia for high school, but it looks like he is originally from Boston."

Bailey turned to Cody. "Maybe that's how you know him then? Maybe you two went to middle school together or something like that?"

Cody nodded. "Maybe, but I don't remember anyone at Buckner named Rob..." He turned to Master Chun. "Can I ask what his last name is?"

"Of course. Its Cavanaugh. And Rob isn't even his first name – its his middle one. His real first name is Theodore."

Upon hearing that bombshell, Cody's eyes went wide as realization hit him like a ton of bricks. He just swallowed and stood up. "Thank you, Master Chun. You've been quite helpful. I don't think we should waste any more of your time..." He turned to Bailey. "Come on, Sweetie...lets go." And with that, Cody walked out of the office.

Bailey frowned, but she quickly followed Cody out. But he hadn't stopped outside, and she basically had to run to keep up with him as he hurriedly made it back up to their suite. Once inside, he began pacing back forth and mumbling to himself which caused Bailey to really begin to get worried.

"Cody? What is going on? It looks like you've seen a ghost!"

He turned and looked at her. "Worse! I knew he looked familiar! Its Theo!" He shook his head. "I can't believe I didn't recognize him..."

She was confused now. "Wait a minute. Who is Theo?"

He stopped pacing and sighed. "You remember that bully I told you about who constantly made digs at me and treated Zack like an organ grinder's monkey by constantly giving him things?"

Bailey paused to think. "Yeah, I remember that now. You made it seem like he was a real jerk."

Cody just gave her a look and Bailey quickly put two and two together. "Wait a minute! Are you saying that Rob is that same guy who used to do that?"

He just nodded. "Exactly..." He sighed. "Rob is Theo. He's Theodore Robert Cavanaugh..." He shook his head. "Its like his parents knew what he was going to be like when they named him. And like his namesake, it seems like he enjoys terrorizing people originally from the Pacific Northwest!" **(AN: Reference to Ted Bundy)**

"Sweetie, don't you think you're stretching things a little bit to compare your old bully to one of the worst serial killers in American history?"

"Bails, you weren't there. You didn't see how bad he was. If you don't believe me, call Zack. He'll tell you all about him too..."

Bailey sighed. "Cody, I do believe you in that he was that bad...as a 13 year old. But that was a long time ago, and its been almost eight years since them. For all we know, he might not be the same guy that you remember. He might have grown up. I mean, Zack and London did. Maybe he did too?"

"Does blowing off his tutoring session to play ultimate sound like he's matured?"

She paused. "Well, not really, but it doesn't mean he's the same way he was when he was just a kid..."

"Maybe not, but until we know for sure, we can't let our guards down around him!"

"Cody..."

He took her hands in his. "Please, Sweetie? If I'm wrong, its no big deal. But what if I'm right and he hasn't changed a bit?"

She looked into his eyes and saw how serious he was about this. Bailey just nodded. "Okay, Cody. For you, I'll do that."

Cody smiled at her. "Thank you, Bailey. I really do appreciate this. But remember, we can't let him know that we've figured out who he is."

Inwardly, Bailey sighed to herself. She wasn't sure this was going to be necessary, but if it was that important to Cody, she would go along with it. Besides, part of her was really wishing Cody would be wrong about this. With all they had to do for school, the last thing they needed was more drama in their life.

_In Private Dorm Room in Berkeley South_

Theo was laying back on his bed with his cell phone pressed to his ear.

"Hey Man, its me, Theo..."

"Yeah, this place sucks pretty bad. I liked it better when it was you and me taking on Princeton together."

"Yeah, it sucked there too, but at least with us both there, we had some fun..."

He began laughing. "Well, there maybe a silver lining though. There was this nerd I used to constantly give pure hell to in Boston when I was younger. Turns out he goes to school here, so I can start doing that again. Plus, he has a fiancee that is hot!"

Theo kept laughing. "You know it! I'm going to make his life a living hell and then take his girl away from him! Naturally, I'll dump her after I'm done with her. And get this, this guy maybe be a genius or something, but he has no idea who I am. He doesn't seem to recognize me at all! This is going to be way too easy!"

He paused. "Oh, I remember. I know I have to keep my nose clean after our last stunt. A prison cell is the last place I want to be, but I shouldn't have to resort to anything underhanded to pull this off..." Theo paused again. "But to be on the safe side, maybe you should send me some of your...special stuff. And when I'm more connected around here, I'll place an order for more of your other goodies..."

_London's Penthouse_

After being back in Boston a full weekend and letting herself get used to everything again, Maddie was glad to be home. She was thoroughly enjoying seeing her friends and catching up with them again. Of course, she remembered Todd and Emma, and, Maddie was happy that London and Moseby were happy. But by Monday, London was beginning to suspect that something else was going on with her friend. That afternoon, Maddie was sitting on the couch with London as they both sipped a cup of tea and watched television. Out of the corner of her eyes, London could watch Maddie frown and sigh every so often. Finally, when she couldn't take it anymore, she turned to her friend and spoke up.

"So, are you ready to tell me what's really going on, Maddie?"

Maddie just kept looking at the TV and tried to deflect the question. "What are you talking about, London?"

"Maddie, you just showed up on my doorstep out of the blue on Friday night. You didn't call or let me know you were coming which is so unlike you. So, based on that alone, I know there is definitely something going on with you. Remember, I'm your friend. Talk to me."

Maddie shook her head. "I can't, London...you would never understand."

"Try me. Whatever it is, I can help you."

Maddie just sighed and shook her head. She had been hoping no one would catch on that something was wrong with her. She had figured that London of all people would have been the easiest to fool, but it was looking like she was wrong about that. And it didn't seem like London was going to let up with her questions either.

"London..."

"Maddie, just tell me what it is. I'll bet I understand whatever it is better than you think I will..."

Finally, the pressure of keeping everything all bottled up inside combined with London's interrogation finally became too much for Maddie to endure. She lost it and just glared at London before blurting it out.

"I seriously doubt it, London! As far I as know, you've never been pregnant before!"

___To be Continued..._

**AN: I hope this episode explained a few things that may have caused confusion in the previous episode.**___  
_


	12. Daddy Issues

_Episode 12_

_"Daddy Issues"_

_I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did._

_Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them._

_Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves._

_And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so..._

_London's Penthouse_

London could only sit there in shock as she stared at her friend while her eyes almost bulged out of their sockets and her jaw almost hit the floor. After the bomb Maddie had just dropped on her, she couldn't have said anything if she had wanted to. Which actually worked out since London had no idea what to say even if she could have formed the words. Maddie was pregnant? That was the last thing London had ever expected her to say right then. Yeah, the absence of Trevor had made her think that maybe they were having a fight or a problem of some kind, but certainly not this.

Shaking her head, London hoped that would help her clear her mind and allow her to gather her thoughts, but it wasn't helping any. All her ears and mind could hear was Maddie telling her that she was pregnant, and it kept echoing around her skull over and over. The part that was really confusing London was that it just didn't make any sense to her. Wasn't Maddie the good Catholic girl? London could admit to herself that she didn't know much about the dogma of that denomination, but she had a pretty good feeling that nuns at Our Lady of Perpetual Sorrow would be just as shocked as she was. Shaking her head again, London was really hoping that she had heard Maddie wrong or something along those lines. Finally, she regained her voice.

"Maddie...Did you just say that you were..." She paused. "...that you were pregnant?"

Maddie just nodded at her sadly. "Yeah, I did. So, while I do appreciate your willingness to help, London, I'm pretty sure this is something you have no idea what I'm dealing with right now. I mean...unless I've missed more while I've been away than I've been told, I don't think you have any idea of what how finding out something like this can change your life forever..."

"Well, no, I guess I wouldn't. But...but..I mean...how did this happen?" London paused and shook her head. "Never mind! Strike that! I'm pretty sure I know how this happened! But why didn't you say anything to me about this before? This is wonderful news!"

Maddie sighed. "Yeah, for most people it would be. Unfortunately for me, not so much. London, I've hardly told anyone at all about this because I'm still trying to come to grips with it myself. This wasn't planned. Getting pregnant right now was the last thing in the world I ever expected to happen. I just need time to figure out what I'm going to do, and I needed to get away for a while. So, I decided to come back to Boston because I figured I'd be comfortable here in my old surroundings. But once I landed at the airport, it dawned on me that I couldn't go to my parents and tell them. They would have been highly disappointed in me at best and disowned me at worst. Either way, I knew it would only make them argue more, and I didn't want to be the cause of that. So, your penthouse was the only other place I felt like I could come. I know I should have called first, but I couldn't..." She paused. "I hope you aren't disappointed in me too..."

London gave her a funny look. "Why would I be disappointed in you? Maddie, you're one of my two best friends in the whole world. For several years, it was you who constantly took care of me. And then when I left for the ship, that task got turned over to Bailey. Fortunately, I can take care of myself now, but I still owe you both a whole lot. I'm here for you in whatever you need." She paused. "But I do have to ask. Where's Trevor? I mean...I'm assuming he's the father of your baby, right?"

Maddie looked almost offended. "London! Of course he is!"

"Well, I told you I had to ask. I mean, you show up here on my door step out of the blue, and all weekend, you've tried to avoid the subject whenever someone mentions his name. Now, you tell me that you're pregnant and that he is the father. Naturally, that's going to cause me to ask questions. Like, why isn't Trevor here with you?"

She leaned her head back on the couch and sighed. "Trevor isn't here because he and I broke up..."

London's eyes went wide again. "He dumped you when he found out that you were pregnant?" Her anger began to rapidly build. "Why that no good, low down son of a..." She pulled her cell phone out of her purse. "I'm going to call Daddy right now and have him teach Trevor a lesson he won't ever forget! Nobody does that to a friend of mine!"

Immediately, Maddie turned to London and grabbed her arm. "No! You can't do that!"

"Why not? For what he did, he deserves a lot worse than this!"

She sighed again. "Because Trevor doesn't even know I'm pregnant..."

London thought she was done being shocked that afternoon, but this new tidbit got her too. "How in the world can he not know? If he doesn't know, that means you didn't tell him! Maddie, what were you thinking?" She shoved her phone into Maddie's hand. "Here, call and tell him right now! He as the right to know about this, don't you think?"

"I can't tell him now, London. It just wouldn't work out for us. I mean, he's not even in the country right now..."

She was beginning to get a little impatient. "Maddie, where is he then?"

"London..."

London narrowed her eyes. "Maddie, tell me where he is!"

"I just did. He's in London, England. For the next year, he'll be the London based correspondent for a conservative leaning newspaper here in the states. The day I found out I was pregnant was the same day he found out he had been offered that job. I told him I had a surprise for him, but he said he had one too and insisted that he go first. London, you should have seen and heard how excited about it he was. He even called it the opportunity of a lifetime. He said they wanted us to fly over there the very next day..." She shook her head. "Once I heard that, I just knew I couldn't tell him about this. I couldn't just destroy his dream like that. So, I knew I had to do something so that he wouldn't resent me later for losing that chance. When he brought up us moving to England, I balked at it. It lead to us having a big fight, and I told him that I wanted to break up with him. He's tried to call me several times a day since then, but I've ignored all of his calls. If you want to check my phone, you'd see that he's already called me four time today as it is..."

London narrowed her eyes and glared at her friend. "Not good enough! Maddie, he has the right to know that he's going to be a father! When he gets back next year, are you going to be there to meet him at the airport with a carriage and be like...'Surprise!'?"

Maddie was getting a little stressed out. "I don't know! I haven't had time to think about things like that yet! I've been more focused on the life growing inside of me and making sure I do the best thing for it..."

Taking a deep breath, something else dawned on London. "Do you have a doctor here in Boston yet? Do you even have medical insurance?"

She paused again before shaking her head. "No...to both."

London pulled out her phone again. "Don't worry about it then. I'm calling the human resources person at London Inns right now and getting you put on the payroll this afternoon. I'll make sure that includes all health benefits too. With me calling her personally, she'll make sure it goes into effect tomorrow. After that, I'm making you an appointment tomorrow to see the best doctor in Boston!"

Maddie just looked at her. "London, I couldn't ask you to do that..."

"You're not asking me - I'm telling you what's going to happen! You can fight me on it, but you know me, Maddie. Eventually, I always get my way!"

"Thanks, London. I promise you I will do a good job for you."

"I know you will..." She paused. "You can start next week though. But between now and your appointment tomorrow, you need to call Trevor and tell him the truth!"

She shook her head. "No, I won't do that. London, I truly appreciate you helping me like this. But this is my life, and I need to figure out what to do on my own."

"But you're not on your own! You have me, and you'll have Moseby, Carey, Zack, Maya, Bailey, Cody, and a whole bunch of other people here to help you out. But none of them is the father of your child. You and the baby will both need him in the coming months..." London paused. "Besides, I thought you loved Trevor..."

Maddie stared at her again. "I do! That's why I'm doing all of this! Its for him!"

"Then I don't get it. How do you think he's going to feel when he does find out? Can you imagine how hurt and angry he'll feel that you didn't tell him?"

Maddie slumped back into the couch again. "Like I said, I just don't know anything right now, London. I hope he won't hate me for this, I really do. I'm just trying to do the best thing for everyone here. I'm doing the best I can..."

"Think about your unborn child then for a moment. Is depriving him or her of its father the right thing for it? Is that the best thing for him or her?"

She hung her head. "Again, I don't know, London. This is the first time I've ever dealt with something like this before! I'm so confused right now, and all I want to do right now is go to sleep and wake up to find that this has all been a horrible nightmare!"

London realized that she had to back off because Maddie was really fragile right then. "You're right, you do need your rest right now. So, why don't you go lie down for a while. But, we're not done talking about this yet..."

Maddie stood up and nodded. "I know. And London, thank you so much for being here for me like this. I don't know what I'd do without you right now. But you have to let me do things my own way. I don't want you going behind my back and trying to track down Trevor so you can tell him. Please, respect my wishes."

She sighed. "Fine. I may not like it, but I promise you that I won't do anything like that. But you have other things you need to start thinking about too."

"Like what?"

"Well, to start with, when are you due?"

Maddie paused to think. "The middle of March. I'm right around three months along right now."

"That means it probably won't be long until you begin showing. You might want to keep this a secret from Trevor, but soon enough, you won't be able to hide it from everyone else..."

_New Haven_

The next day was Tuesday, and that meant Cody and Bailey were due to have their first tutoring sessions since they had discovered that Rob was really Theo Cavanaugh. And when they arrived at the study rooms in the basement of the library, both knew they had to play it cool and act like nothing was different. Of course, Cody was so focused on playing his role that he failed to notice Ox glaring at him once again. However, since Trixie had arrived first, Cody had no choice but to head on into the study room with her to begin their session. Before he did though, he told Bailey he was right next door in case she needed anything. She just smiled at him but was still hoping this wasn't going to amount to anything. About three minutes to two, Rob finally showed up and smiled at her.

"I'm here on time!"

Bailey just nodded. "I can see that. Well, lets get started then. I have my own homework to do later."

They headed into the study room and began unloading their backpacks. And once Bailey was ready, she spoke up again.

"Alright, what are you going over now in your class?"

Rob grinned at her. "Actually, before we get started, I have something else to give you as a token of my thanks and appreciation..." He slid a a long, flat velvet box across the table towards her.

Bailey looked at it before looking back up at him. "What is it?"

"Open it and find out!"

She was getting a bad feeling in the pit of her stomach, but she still did as he suggested. And when she opened the box, she saw a gold watch encrusted with diamonds and emeralds. "Its a watch..."

He grinned. "Yeah, I thought you could use it..."

"I don't know why you would think that..." She held up her wrist. "I already have one that works just fine."

Rob laughed. "You may have a watch, but not one like this one. Its is a Cartier..."

Bailey looked at him in confusion. "Is that supposed to mean something to me? It looks nice, but I admit that I don't really keep up with high end brands. My old roommate in high school once got mad at me because I butchered the names of some of her favorite designers..."

He had a look of surprise on his face. "Cartier is the best watchmaker in the world. Its even better than Rolex. Besides, I figured it matched that rock on your finger better than the one you're currently wearing."

Suddenly, she remembered Cody telling her how Theo had once plied Zack with expensive gifts to get him to do whatever he wanted. So, Bailey shook her head and shoved the watch back towards him. "I'm sorry, but I can not accept this..."

Rob was even more surprised now. "Why not?"

"Well, to begin with, like I said, I already have a perfectly good watch. And it was a birthday gift from my fiance, Cody. He even had it inscribed on the back that he would love me for every second, every minute and every hour of every day. The fact that he gave it to me and meant every single word he had engraved on there makes it more valuable and precious to me than any other watch in the world could be. Besides, he knows I don't care for gaudy, expensive things like that Carter one..."

"Cartier..." He laughed. "And the ring on your finger says otherwise. That thing is worth a fortune!"

Bailey looked down at her engagement ring and couldn't help but to smile. "I love this ring but not because of what its worth. Its an heirloom that has been in Cody's family for generations upon generations. The fact that he gave it to me shows me that he already considers me part of the Martin family, and I feel the same way about him and my family. So, I would feel the same way about it even if it was just a plane band."

"Are you serious?"

"Dead serious..." She paused. "Speaking of being serious, I'm being serious too when I say you shouldn't have sent me those flowers either. That wasn't necessary."

He laughed. "Why not? Am I not allowed to show you my thanks for giving me a second chance?"

"If you want to show your gratitude for me tutoring you, then keep showing up on time and taking this serious. And if that's not enough for you, a simple 'thank you' would suffice. I only accept flowers from two men – my fiance and my father. I should have brought them back today to give to you, but if it makes you feel any better, the university hospital said they would brighten up someone's day there..."

That left Theo speechless. Usually, giving girls flowers and expensive gifts had always worked for him in the past. But, it looked like he was going to have to move to Plan B. "Okay, explain this to me. You're about 21, right? We're about the same age here then. How do you know you are ready to get married? Like I said, we're the same age, and I know I'm nowhere near that point in my life yet..."

Bailey smiled again. "Because I just know. I've known Cody for over six years now, and I can't imagine my life without him. Simply, I want to spend the rest of my life with him."

"How do you know there isn't someone else out there better for you that you haven't met yet?"

"Because Cody is my perfect feller. There's no one out there better for me than he is." She paused. "Answer a question for me then. Have you ever been in a serious relationship or in love?"

Theo paused. "Well, no...I can't say I have."

"Well, what gives you the right to question me about something you know nothing about?"

That one stumped him momentarily. "Fair enough. Why him though? No offense to him or anything, but he is kind of a nerd..."

That caused Bailey's smile to turn to a frown. "Why would you say something like that? What gives you the right to judge him when you don't even know him?"

Theo sat there for a moment to think. He realized he had almost blown his cover, and he didn't want to do anything to tip Cody or Bailey off about his true identity. "Well, I was talking to Master Chun, and he told me that your fiance has a perfect 4.0 here at Yale pre-med and with a double major. Only a nerd could really pull that off..."

Bailey smirked at him. "Well, I'm pulling off the same thing. So, I guess according to your rationale that I'm a nerd too, huh? So, if I'm a 'nerd;, wouldn't it makes sense that a 'nerd' like Cody would be perfect for me?"

He had to backtrack quickly. "No, That's not what I meant to say at all. But, be serious here. He is well...him, and you are...well, you. You could definitely do a whole lot better..."

Now, she was really starting to get mad. No one talked about her Cody like that. Bailey was definitely beginning to think Cody had been right about Theo all along. So, she just glared at him. "Again, you don't even know Cody, so I would strongly encourage you to refrain from making disparaging remarks about him in the future. It shows real ignorance to speak about something or someone that you know absolutely nothing about! And not that its any of your business, but I know there is no one better for me than Cody. Besides being the kindest, sweetest and, in my opinion, handsomest feller out there, I love the way he makes me feel about myself. In his eyes, I can see that I'm the most precious thing in the world to him, and I feel the same way about him. Cody is my Prince Charming, and he's told me that I will always be his queen. And the best part is we both know the other means that with their whole heart. We love each other heart and soul and always will. Now, you tell me. Why should I bother listening to your thoughts on relationships when you admit you've never been in a serious relationship let alone been in love? That would be like taking driver's ed from someone who's never been inside a car before..."

Theo was stunned at her outburst. "Look, I was just thinking that..."

She interrupted him. She was far beyond being just angry at him. "You know what? The only subject that I care about what you think is organic chemistry. We have gotten way off topic here, so I suggest we get back to the reason why we're here. I'm just your tutor, and that's all we will ever be. My personal life is none of your concern and not up for further discussion. Got it?"

Theo held up his hands. "Okay, okay...Sheesh...Sorry if I offended you somehow. I guess I just thought this would be easier if we became friends too..."

Bailey had to bite her tongue right then. It was pretty obvious to her that was a complete lie, and she thought he had other ideas in mind. "Sorry, I have plenty of friends already. Besides, I'll be leaving here in several months to go to medical school with Cody. And I seriously doubt you and I will keep in touch after that. Now, shall we get back to studying? If not, I'll go next door and help Cody with someone who actually wants our help..."

Theo was really reeling by now. None of this had gone like he had expected it to. But, he wasn't ready to quite give up just yet. "Alright. But before we do, can I ask one other school related question?"

She sighed. "What?"

"Well, I was thinking that since you're in my food class, I could join you and your fiance in doing the group project in there..."

Bailey forced herself not to laugh as she shook her head. "No thanks. Cody and I have already gotten a lot of research and leg work done for it already. It wouldn't be fair to either of us to bring you in at such a late point. And no offense, but you've already shown how unreliable and easily distracted you can get when it comes to your studies. Besides, Cody and I live together, so we can work on it any time of the day or night that we want. It just doesn't make any sense for us to throw a wrench in to what is already working for us. So, I would advise you keep looking and find another group..."

"Geez...sorry I even asked. And just to be clear, I did get in to Yale, so I must be able to do okay academically..."

"If you say so. But while we're clearing up things, here's something else. If you ever bad mouth my fiance in any way again, no matter how slight, you'll be looking for a new tutor. I'm doing this as a favor for Master Chun, but if I tell him that you show up late and rather focus on my personal life instead of organic, I'm sure he'd understand me dropping you. He already knows I have better things to do with my time than to waste it here with you. So, from now on, we'll treat this as a purely professional arrangement. Understood?"

Theo shook his head and sighed. Looked like he was going to have to go back to the drawing board. "Fine. Lets just get to work then..."

A couple of hours later, Cody was packing up his things in his study room when Bailey walked into the room carrying her things. Upon seeing her, he looked up and smiled.

"Hey, Sweetie...how did things go today?"

Bailey sighed. "Well, if you want to tell me 'I told you so...', go ahead and say it. It looks like you were 100% right about Rob also known as Theo after all..."

His smile faded. "Why do you say that? What happened?"

Briefly, Bailey recounted the earlier conversation she had had with Theo, and Cody could only shook his head. As much as he wasn't surprised, he had really hoped he had been wrong about this.

"I'm sorry, Sweetie. I wish I hadn't been right, but by what you just told me, it looks like he's up to his old tricks. And from his digs at me, it seems pretty obvious that he's fully aware of who I am." He paused. "So, you want to stop by Master Chun's office on the way back to our room to ask him to find a new tutor for Theo?"

Bailey smiled. "Not at all. I fully plan on remaining his tutor..."

Now, Cody was the confused one. "Huh? But you just said..."

She laughed. "I know what I said. But its obvious that he was planning on trying to mess with us. Well, if I keep tutoring him without him knowing that we know who he really is, I can turn the tables and mess with him..."

"Bails..."

"Cody, haven't you heard the old saying about keeping your friends close and your enemies closer? Well, this way, I can keep an eye on him and try to find out what he's up to. And with us a few steps ahead of him, we can make him regret anything he tries to do..."

He shook his head. "I don't like this one bit. Bails, I'd never forgive myself if you got hurt just because you're engaged to me. If not for him knowing me, he probably would leave you alone..."

"Maybe..." Bailey smiled again. "But that hasn't stopped you from standing right next to me when Moose has tried to bother us. If not for me, he wouldn't have a problem with you. Well, its the same thing here."

Cody sighed again. "I hope this doesn't come back and bite us in the butt..."

_London's Penthouse_

That same afternoon in Boston, London was pacing back and forth in her penthouse waiting for Maddie to get back from breaking the news of her pregnancy to her parents. She was just thankful that everything had gone well at the doctor's office that morning. If it hadn't, she would have advised Maddie to hold off on telling her parents for a little while. But as she paced, London did have to admit to herself that Maddie's pregnancy was inadvertently turning out to be a good thing for her. With Cody and Bailey having completed the plans for their wedding, this was taking its place as her new pet project. She realized that didn't sound particularly good, but it was true nonetheless. And while London still didn't agree with some of the decisions Maddie was making about her life, she did respect her enough to keep her promise not to try to get in touch with Trevor. But London did have the Tipton blood flowing through her veins. While she had promised she wouldn't do anything herself, she realized she could find someone else to do the dirty work for her and still technically keep her word to Maddie. And as she though, a large grin spread across her face as she knew exactly who would be her perfect partner in crime.

Finally, Maddie returned back to the penthouse close to six o'clock that evening, and immediately slumped down onto the couch. And from the look on her face, London had a feeling things could have gone better.

"That bad, huh?"

Maddie sighed as she sunk further down into the couch. "Oh, I guess it could have been worse. All my mother did was cry, and my father looked like he was about to have an ulcer. But, at least they didn't disown me..."

London sat down next to her. "Well, you just have to give them some time to get used to this. I mean, they just did find out about it after all. But don't worry, they'll come around eventually."

"I sure hope so."

She tried to cheer her up. "They will, and when they finally do, they'll be thrilled that they're going to be grandparents..." She paused and smiled. "Unfortunately, there's nothing your kid can do about being stuck with having Liam as an uncle..."

Even Maddie had to laugh at that. "Oh yeah...that should be interesting."

"Look on the bright side though. Even though his or her uncle is less than desirable, your child will be lucky to have you as his or her mother. Maddie, You were born to be a mom. I mean...look how well you always took care of me."

Maddie smiled. "Thanks, London. That means a lot to me coming from you."

She laughed. "Well, just make sure you keep him or her away from any open windows especially if I'm going to be around it. You and I both know we don't have the best of luck with babies and windows..."

Maddie had to laugh again. "Oh my gosh! I had almost completely forgotten about that!" She shook her head. "Poor Esteban..."

London looked at her incredulously. "Poor Esteban? What about poor me? For some reason, teachers were constantly giving me stupid assignments like that. On the boat, Tut made us do a marriage assignment where I had to pretend to be married to Zack..."

Maddie just looked her. "Please tell me you're joking..."

"Afraid not. Of course, it ended in divorce. And I think he actually cried when he realized he wasn't going to get any alimony from me."

Maddie just shook her head. "I think I would have paid to see that..." She paused. "Speaking of Zack, I know you've told me about his and Maya's history, but from what I can see, they seem to be doing pretty well now."

London shrugged. "Yeah, I guess they are. They both seem genuinely happy..."

Maddie sighed. "Yeah, he does. Everyone seems happy but me. He has Maya. You have Todd. Moseby is married. Esteban is married. Cody and Bailey soon will be married. And here I am looking at being a single mother..."

"By your own choice. You know you don't have to be one..."

"London...please don't start that again. After the day I've had, I'm way too tired to argue with you again."

"Alright. I promised you that I'd try to hold my tongue, and I will."

"Besides, this is the twenty first century. Being a single mother isn't looked down upon like it was in the past. A lot of women do it and are still able to have their careers. I mean...look at Carey. Almost by herself, she raised two twin boys. And look how well they've both turned out."

London nodded. "True, but Kurt is still a big part of both of their lives and knows of their existence. Plus, she did have a whole lot of help. There was us, Arwin, Moseby and even Muriel. Of course, as soon as she could, she shipped them off to the boat with me.." She paused. "But, I hope you know you'll have help too."

Maddie looked at her. "You really think so?"

She smiled. "I know so. Think about it. By this time next year, look at how many potential babysitters you'll have around. Carey, Zack, Maya and I will all be in the hotel. And Cody and Bailey and Moseby and Tut will all be in town as well. And by then, I'm sure you're parents will come around too."

"I sure hope so..."

"But the first thing you have to do is confide in your friends and not be afraid to ask them for help."

Maddie sighed. "I know. You're right. I know they'll be there for us..."

London smiled. "Good. I'm happy to hear you agree with me on something for a change. Because I've already reserved the private dining room downstairs for tonight and invited everyone who is here in town to join us for a special dinner. And after dinner is over, the stage will be all yours..."

Maddie just gave her friend a look. "London! Please tell me you didn't..."

_New Haven_

After their tutoring sessions had finished for the day, Cody and Bailey had headed back to their room to do some homework themselves. And as they did, they were able to forget about what had happened earlier. But once they finished, the topic immediately came back up again, and Cody kept asking Bailey if she was sure she knew what she was doing. And every time he did, she just kept smiling at him and telling him that she was positive. Once he realized there wasn't going to be any talking her out of this, he proceeded to go back over with her everything about Theo that he could remember. Of course, it didn't make him feel any better when he realized that Theo was probably capable of so much more now than he was when he was thirteen.

"Bails, are you really sure about this? No one would blame you if you just dropped out from being his tutor right now. I mean, we can even find out his room number and go confront him right now. Maybe if he knows were wise to him, he'll back off?"

She smiled at him again. "Cody, I know you don't really believe that. Besides, I can take care of myself. Didn't I prove that to you last year with Kyle?"

"Yeah, you did. But I didn't like that plan last year any more than I like this one. Fortunately, we got through the last one without anyone getting hurt. I'm not sure we should press our luck again..."

"I appreciate that you worry about me like that, Sweetie, but I know exactly what I'm doing. Besides, its like I said last year. Guys like Kyle and Theo who try to mess with us need to be taught a lesson they'll never forget. And I'm even more ticked off this year than I was last. I wanted a stress free senior year, and he's getting in the way of that. Besides, this kind of reminds me of what Maya dealt with over this summer. She handled it just fine, and so will we."

Cody sighed. "Well, if you're sure about this, you know you have my total and complete support..." But when she mentioned what Maya went through, a light bulb went off over Cody's head. He remembered Maya saying that Zack had told her to know one's enemy. Well, it had been over eight years since he had last seen Theo, so his knowledge of Theo was lacking. But he had an idea about how to solve that.

Bailey snapped him back to reality though. "Cody, I know I always have your support. But enough about this thought. How did your tutoring session go today?" She smiled at him. "Any problems with Ox?"

Cody shrugged. "It went fine. Trixie seems to actually know her stuff pretty well. I wouldn't be surprised if she didn't need me any more. Plus, it would be nice not to have to deal with Ox everyday. I swear, he must ignore me when I say I'm engaged to you. I don't know of any other way to say that I have no interest in his girlfriend whatsoever..."

Bailey laughed. "I wouldn't worry about it, Sweetie. Most of the time,..." She was about to say something else when there was a knock at the door to their room. Cody got up to answer it, and he found Gertie standing there smiling at him.

"Hey guys! As soon as Howie finishes up a program he's writing, we'll be ready to head down to the dining hall to grab some dinner. Are you two still up for another round of trivia tonight down at the Black Bear Saloon?"

Cody grinned. "Of course we are! Do you think we'd give up a chance to show off our brainpower and make money while doing it? Not in this lifetime!"

She laughed. "Us either..." Gertie paused and closed the door behind her. "Actually, while I'm here, I was hoping I could ask you two for a big favor."

Bailey smiled. "Sure. Just name it."

"Well, do either of you two know anything about building your own computer? I mean as in not buying a standard one but building your own from the ground up with as much memory as you want or as fast as you need or where you can pick and choose which software and programs you want installed..."

Cody paused as he thought of the obvious. "No offense, Gertie, and this might be a stupid question, but why not just ask your boyfriend? I mean...he is our resident computer science major after all..."

She laughed. "Well, if it was for me, I most definitely would. But this computer would be a Christmas gift for him. So, if I want it to be a surprise, I can't really ask him to help me out with it. Besides, I figured with you living with him for three years, you might have a better idea of what kind of programs he would need on it. I want him to have everything he would need on it for graduate school too."

He smiled. "I got you now. And to answer your question, yeah, I have a pretty good idea of some of the things he'll be needing, and I'd be happy to help. But it would probably be a good idea to start off at the campus computing center. They could probably give us a list of everything he'd have to have eventually."

"Why didn't I think of that? Thank you so much, Cody! I'm afraid I'd get to a store and have no idea what I was looking for. My knowledge of computers is limited to Word, Excel, e-mail, the internet and the one drafting program I use all the time. Knowing my luck, I'd get him something that would be completely obsolete as soon as I left the store with it..."

Bailey laughed. "Well, with way they keep expanding technology today, it probably will be anyways."

Cody nodded. "Which is why you want to get as much memory as possible so he can upgrade and add new programs later as he needs them."

Gertie shook her head. "I'm just glad you two know what you're talking about then..." She paused to think. " I'm done on Friday at noon, and Howie doesn't get out of class until three. Would that be enough time to go look?"

"It should be. Bails, does that work for you too?"

She smiled. "Actually, you two will have to go without me. I have an appointment over at student health that afternoon."

Cody frowned. "You do? Why didn't you tell me about this before? Do you want me to go with you?"

She laughed. "Nah, I'll be fine. Actually, I'll just be in and out. I just need to go in for another shot..."

He was confused. "A shot? But you..." He stopped when he realized what kind of shot she was talking about. "Oh yeah...I guess it is about time for you to get another one, isn't it?"

Bailey just nodded. "Yeah, it is. And I definitely don't want to put off getting this. I shudder to think what could happen if I didn't..."

"I completely understand."

Gertie looked back and forth between them in confusion. "What are you two talking about?"

At the same time, both turned to her. "A flu shot..."

Bailey laughed nervously. While she knew she could confide their secret to Gertie, she still would rather as few people knew about it as possible. "You remember how sick I got freshman year..."

Gertie nodded. "Very true..." She paused. "Maybe I should make an appointment to get one myself? I don't want to get sick this semester with as much as I have to do..." She turned to Bailey. "Do you think I could get one the same time I get my birth control shot?"

Cody and Bailey just looked at each other and had no idea what to say to that.

_Zack and Maya's Suite_

By the time Zack and Maya got back to their suite late that evening, both were exhausted both mentally and physically. To say that their day had been an interesting one would have been an understatement. It had started off normal enough as work and class had been pretty much the same as they always were. But at lunch time, both had gotten a text from London demanding their presence that evening at a special dinner in the hotel's private dining room. Both wondered what it was about, but both had a class to get to and figured they would find out later. However, after class, they had to go straight to their martial arts dojo for their biweekly class there. But when it was over, they had to hurry back to the hotel to shower and change so they wouldn't be late for London's dinner. And what they had learned after dinner had shocked them to the core. So, both just sat there on the couch trying to come to terms with what they had just found out.

"Wow..."

Zack nodded. "You can say that again..."

She shook her head. "If this wasn't really happening, I'd think it came straight out of a Lifetime movie..."

He had to laugh at that true. "I guess so...not that I watch that channel" He paused and sighed. "I used to think our past issues were pretty out there, but the one Maddie is dealing with is like ours on steroids..."

Maya nodded. "I know. And after what I did, I guess that's why I can kind of see where Maddie's coming from in all of this..."

Zack turned to look at her in surprise. "You agree with what she's doing?"

Maya shook her head. "I didn't say that. I just mean I can understand it a little bit..."

"Well, I can't! I guess I'm seeing things from Trevor's perspective. There is this vital piece of information that will completely change his life, and he has no idea that it even exists..."

"I know. I feel sorry for the both of them...but maybe this is the way it has to be?"

Zack looked at her again in confusion. "Why would you say that?"

"Well, look at it this way. Both you and I and Cody and Bailey both have had something major thrown at us to see if we were strong enough to overcome it. Fortunately, we all did. Maybe this is the obstacle that Maddie and Trevor have to overcome?"

He paused to consider that. "Maybe. But I think this is a little more major that anything any of us had to deal with. For one, this isn't just about them. There is a third life that will be affected by all of this."

"That's true."

"I mean...I can't even imagine what I would have thought if you had come back from Africa with a little Zack Jr. or Zackerina with you..."

She paused before nodding. "You're right. But all we can do is try to be as supportive as we can. Ultimately, what happens is between them."

He laughed sarcastically. "Yeah...if Trevor ever finds out." Zack paused to think and remembered the look on London's face when Maddie had said she wasn't going to tell Trevor anything. He wasn't sure why, but he got the impression that London was trying to tell him something with her facial expression. But before he could think any more about it, Maya snapped him back to reality.

"Zack?"

He looked up at Maya. "Huh?"

"You okay?"

"Yeah. I'm fine. I was just doing some thinking. You're right though. This is between Maddie and Trevor."

Maya smiled. "Good." She paused and laughed. "Oh, and for the record, there will never be a 'Zackerina'. I think naming a child that would be borderline child cruelty!"

Zack couldn't help but to laugh too. "Awww...I kind of like it! How about Zackerella?"

She just gave him a look and shook her head. He was about to try to make several other suggestions when he felt his cell phone vibrating in his pocket. He pulled it out and saw that he had a text message. Clicking on it, he read it.

_"You and I need to talk ASAP! London"_

___To be Continued..._


	13. Runs in the Family

_Episode 13_

_"Runs in the Family"_

_I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did._

_Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them._

_Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves._

_And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so..._

_Boston_

That Friday was shaping up to be a normal one for Zack. And that afternoon, he followed his usual schedule of getting out of class and then having lunch with Maya. But once she had to leave to head off to teach her swim lessons, he made a change of plans from his usual Friday after routine. Instead of heading back to the Tipton and vegging out in front of the television, he made his way up to the London's penthouse. It was time for him to finally follow up on the text message that he had received on Tuesday evening. So, once he knocked on the door, he waited patiently for the door to open. And a few minutes later, London opened the door, and she had her cell phone pressed to her ear. She let Zack inside as he listened to her tell who ever was on the other end that she had to go. When she finally hung up, London just looked at him with a smirk on her face.

"About time you finally showed up here! I told you that we needed to talk as soon as possible on Tuesday night!"

Zack just smiled at her. "I know, but after the look you gave me that night, I kind of figured it had to do with Maddie and her decision not to tell Trevor about her pregnancy. Based on that, I figured you'd prefer to talk without her knowing about it. Well, since then, whenever I've not been at either work or school, she's been here at the penthouse with you. So, when I saw that her first day at work was today, I thought this would be the first time we could actually talk. So, what's up?"

London could only nod. "Yeah, I guess I can understand that..." She paused and glared at him again. "But the next time I say ASAP, I expect you to at least text me back!"

"Yeah, yeah. So, you want to tell me why you wanted to talk to me or would you prefer to continue to talk about text etiquette?"

She sighed. "Fine. Well, you were right - I do need to talk to you about Maddie. In particular, I wanted to discuss with you her irrational desire to keep this a secret from Trevor. I think she is making a big mistake in doing that!"

He nodded. "Well, I can't disagree with you about that. I think she should tell him because he has a right to know..." He shrugged. "But what can we do about it?"

London grinned. "Funny you should ask. I want you to tell him!"

That surprised Zack. "Me? Why don't you just do it yourself? I mean, wouldn't it be a lot easier for you to do with all of your resources then it would be for me?"

"Yeah, it would. But I promised Maddie that I wouldn't..." She gave him a look. "Now, if someone else were to do it, then I would still be keeping my promise to her."

Zack could only nod as he realized what was going on. "I think I understand this now. You made a promise to her but since I never made a promise, there's your loophole..." He paused. "But don't you think Maddie would get pretty ticked off at me when she finds out what I did? And London, she's going to find out..."

London just looked at him and shook her head. "I think I got the wrong person then. I was looking for Zack Martin. You know, the guy who was the master of being sneaky. The guy who would look at this like a challenge and not run away from it. I need the guy who used to play Moseby like a fiddle..."

He sighed. "I'm still him..."

"Then you should have no problem in doing this then. Zack, I'm asking you to do me a favor here. More than that, I'm asking you to do Maddie and her baby a favor..."

Zack thought about that as he sat down on the couch. Finally, he began shaking his head. "Alright, I'll do it...for the kid. But if I'm going to do this, I'm going to do it my way..."

"I don't care as long as you get it done."

"Okay, but I'm going to do it in a way that can't be traced back to me if I can help it."

"Even better."

He just gave her a look. "But you're going to have to give me somewhere to start. Mainly, can you find out for me the name of the newspaper Trevor is supposed to be working for?"

London nodded. "I'll get right on that. I know its a conservative paper, I'll see if I can dance around the subject and get Maddie to slip which one it is."

"Good. Once you have a name for me, I'll go about find out an address and phone number for it. Then, I can simply disguise my voice and leave him a voice mail. That sounds easy enough. Trevor finds out, and nothing can be traced back to either one us..."

"I just hope its that easy. And I hope you know what you're doing, Zack..."

He grinned. "Trust me, London. This isn't my first time being devious and conniving. I may have cleaned up my act as I've gotten older, but its like riding a bike - you never forget how."

She laughed. "I'm not sure if I should be ecstatic or concerned that you'll one day be leading London Inns now..."

"Well, I always did like walking the fine line between mischief and illegality." Zack paused. "But, I will need your help with something else."

"Name it..."

"Tell Moseby to look the other way if there are several international phone calls coming from my office phone..."

London shook her head and reached for her purse. A few seconds later, she pulled out a cell phone. "Here, just use this instead. International calls are included, and calls can't be traced back to it. Besides, I'd rather Moseby not know about this. Maya too if you can help it."

"Why?"

"Because the more people who know, the more likely it will get back to Maddie..."

Zack nodded. "Good point." He checked his watch. "Alright, its about three o'clock right now. Unfortunately, by now in London, all offices are probably already closed for the weekend. I'll get on this first thing Monday morning."

_New Haven_

A couple hours away on that same Friday afternoon in New Haven, Bailey was just getting back to her and Cody's dorm room after her appointment over at student health. She would have been back much quicker, but irony of ironies, there was a long wait to see the doctor due to flu shots. When she opened the door and headed inside, she expected the room to be empty as Cody should still be out computer shopping with Gertie. But, instead, Cody was sitting at the small table in their kitchenette with his cell phone pressed to his ear as he quickly scribbled notes on to a notepad in front of him. He was so engrossed with whoever he was talking to that he didn't even hear Bailey come in. So, she sat down her purse on their coffee table before heading over to sit right across the table from him. And once he did see her, he smiled, held up one finger and returned his focus back to his mystery phone call.

"Excellent! His name is Theodore Robert Cavanaugh. I know he is from Boston originally, attended a boarding school somewhere in Georgia, and then attended Princeton before making his way here to Yale..." He paused as he listened to whoever he was talking about. "Thank you so much! And if you wouldn't mind, the sooner you can find out anything, the better. And once you do, please fax me whatever you have to 475-555-9253. Its my and Bailey's land line number here in the dorm, but we mainly just use it for the fax machine..." He paused again to listen. "No, its a completely secure line. No one else has a key to our room except us." Cody smiled. "Thank you again for your help in this matter. I really appreciate it."

Cody finished his phone call before shoved his phone back into his pocket. And when he looked up again, he could see that Bailey had a questioning look look on her face. So, he just smiled at her. "Hey you..."

Bailey couldn't help but smile back. "Well, hey to you too. What are you doing back her so quickly? I figured it might take you and Gertie a few hours to find what she was looking for..." She laughed. "Actually, I was kind of thinking of coming back and taking a long, hot bath while I waited for you to get back."

He kept smiling. "Well, I tought it would take us a while too, but we got lucky. Like I had suggested, we started out at the campus computer center. Turns out that not only do they do tech support, but they also will build computers for students too. And since they are a not for profit organization, they gave Gertie one heck of a deal on exactly what she wanted to get Tapeworm. Add that to the fact that most of the people working there are computer science grad students, they knew exactly what programs and software that he would need. So, we were actually in and out in less than an hour." He paused and laughed. "Though, one of the guys working in there is a TA in our Computers and the Law class. We got to talking, and he gave me some suggestions on our final project in there. According to him, if you focus your project on the...seedier parts of the internet and legal issues surrounding them, you're more than likely to keep the professor's attention and get a better grade."

She laughed too. "Well, I'll definitely keep that in mind when it comes time for us to work on our project in there. And I'm glad everything seemed to work out for Gertie too..." She was about to ask about Cody about his phone call when he cut her off by speaking up himself.

"So, how did your afternoon go? Did you have any problems with your appointment over at student health?"

Bailey just shrugged. "Well, other than having to wait almost an hour because of a flu shot back up, it went pretty much they way it usually goes. I gave blood, they checked it, and then I got my shot. If hadn't had to wait, I would probably have been in and out in ten minutes." She paused. "But to be honest, I took today a whole lot more seriously than I probably would have a few days ago."

Cody nodded. "I know what you mean. I was just as confused as you were when London told us to be ready for a webchat on Tuesday night. I had no idea it was going to involve Maddie dropping the bomb on everyone that she was pregnant. And if it can happen to someone as responsible as Maddie, it can happen to anyone. It made the possibility of us having a surprise pregnancy ourselves a whole lot more real to me."

"Yeah, it did to me too. And its not that I don't look forward to the time when we're ready to have kids, but they aren't in our plans for at least seven more years - this year, four years of med school and two years of residency. After that, I know I'll be more than ready."

Cody laughed. "Hey, you don't have to convince me, Bails. You're preaching to the choir here. I won't lie though - if you came to me right now and told me you we're pregnant, you'd quickly find me passed out on the floor unconscious."

Bailey shook her head and laughed too. "Gee...thanks, Cody. I appreciate that."

He grinned. "Hey, I'm just forewarning you. We could already have five kids and you would be telling me that our sixth is on the way, and I'm pretty sure I'd still faint then too."

She shook her head and teased him. "And you're sure you want to be a doctor?"

"I never said anything about being an obstetrician! Besides, after seeing the video of Zack and I being born, I think I can go the rest of my life without ever having to see a live birth ever again. I'll leave that up to others..."

Bailey just gave him a look. "I don't think so, buster! When the day does come for me to give birth to our children, you will be standing there right beside me holding my hand and feeding me ice chips! Do you understand me?"

Cody smiled again. "Will you promise not to yell at me while you're having contractions? Will you promise not to squeeze my hand so hard that you end up breaking bones? Remember, I have sparrow like bones..."

She leaned over the table and kissed him. "Sweetie...Not a chance."

He shrugged. "Fair enough I guess. But Bails, even if I do pass out when you finally do tell me that you're pregnant, it won't mean that I won't be thrilled about it. I really do look forward to us being parents someday." He smiled at her. "Of course, I know if we have girls, I won't get any sleep whatsoever once they become teenagers. Especially if they are even half as beautiful as their mother is..."

Bailey smiled back at him. "I appreciate you saying that, Sweetie. And I do hope our sons are as handsome and brilliant as their father is. Tell you what though. If you will be there with me by my side and hold my hand when I'm giving birth to our kids, I'll be there for you and hold your hand when you go in for your prostate exam or if you have kidney stones."

He shuddered. "I could have gone all day without having either of those images in my mind...Thanks, Honey."

She laughed. "Anytime, Sweetie." She paused waiting for him to finally bring up his phone call, but it looked like he was still having disturbing mental images. Bailey shook her head and sighed. "So, who were you talking to on the phone when I came in?"

He looked up at her again and smiled. "Curious about that, are you?"

"Well, yeah. You were telling someone all about Theo. Who were you telling about him?"

"Well, when I got back to the dorm this afternoon, I saw Master Chun downstairs. And seeing him reminded me about something. You remember this summer when Maya was telling us about her encounter with that guy she was rehabbing?"

"Yeah. What about it?"

"She mentioned something that her and Zack's sensai had told them - know your enemy. Well, it dawned on me that I really only know Theo from about eight years ago. That's a large chunk of time where I have no clue what he's been up to. I mean, just thinking about myself, my life has completely change in that amount of time. Anyways, seeing Master Chun reminded me of something else he told us. You remember him saying that there was something off about his records from Princeton?"

Bailey nodded. "Uh huh..."

"Well, it dawned on me there may be something there worth knowing. So, I called London to see if she could recommend someone who could solve that mystery for us. Unfortunately, there was a knock at her door, but before she had to go, she gave me the number of her father's personal private eye. What you heard when you came in was me talking to him. And the good news is that he's agreed to see what he can dig up for us. If he finds out anything, he's going to fax it to me immediately. If you insist of still tutoring him to keep an eye on him, I want to know what we should be looking for..."

Bailey could only nod again. "Probably a good idea, Sweetie." She paused again. "I wonder if he'll find anything..."

_Boston_

On the following Friday, the 10th of October, Zack once again had to afternoon off to devote all of his efforts towards his quest to try to find Trevor. For the past week, he had spent several hours of company time trying to track him down in England. Unfortunately, London hadn't been successful in finding out of the name of the paper from Maddie, so Zack had to try a scorched earth tactic. He contacted every newspaper in London that he could find, but he still wasn't having any luck. Most of time someone actually answered the phone, they would hang up on him after hearing his question. And the ones who actually did say something would just reply they had never heard of the bloke before hanging up too. Zack was beginning to get really frustrated as his opinion on Londoners continued to decline. He thought they had been bad enough when he was playing croquet there, but now, they were just being plain rude. **(AN: No offense to anyone from London)** However, luck was about to finally shine on him as he finally found someone who was willing to talk to him. And even better, it seemed like he finally found where Trevor was working. Of course, that was as far as he got before he ran into red tape. After hanging up, he at least felt like he had made a break in the case. Zack was sitting back on the couch trying to figure out his next move when he heard a knock at his door. Getting up and opening it up, he found London standing there. And before Zack could even say hello, she strolled on into his suite and closed the door behind her.

"Well, have you been able to get a hold of Trevor yet and tell him what was going on?"

Zack shook his head. "Not yet. Until today, I had come up with nothing but dead ends, but I believe I've finally found out where he works. Unfortunately, the person I spoke with began giving the run around with something about employee privacy and stuff like that. After I explained that it was a matter of life and death, she finally put me through to the person there in charge of human resources. However, the lady never picked up, so I left a message on her voice mail saying that Trevor was having a family emergency back here in the States and I needed to get a hold of him ASAP."

London sighed. "I hate red tape. Daddy says it always makes things more complicated than they should be."

"Well, I plan on keeping on trying to get through to this lady." He checked his watch. "Unfortunately, its now past 8:00 over there now. I doubt I'll hear anything back before next Monday at the earliest."

She just nodded. "Probably not, but I fully expect you to call me as soon as you do!"

He nodded. "I will. I..." But before he could finish his thought, his cell phone began ringing. Checking out the caller ID, he could tell it was an international call and held up a finger to London. "Hold that thought a second. This phone call might be her actually calling me back..."

Zack answered the call, and he began talking. London could only hear one side of the phone call, but it was evident Zack was trying to explain why it was so imperative that he got in touch with Trevor. But that's when she noticed him go silent.

Finally, he spoke again. "Oh...Well, if you do hear back from him, please tell him to call me ASAP. Tell him it has to do with Maddie, and I guarantee he'll want to call me back. And thank you for returning my call..."

Zack closed his phone and London just looked at him expectantly. "Well? And what was that about having him call you back? I thought you were going for anonymity here..."

He swallowed. "Umm...Well, I was, but that was before I heard what she just told me. London, we may have a big problem now!"

London could tell by the expression on his face that this wasn't going to be good. "What do you mean? What kind of problem?"

Zack shook his head. "Seems Trevor was so upset about Maddie breaking up with him that he...that he..." He paused and sighed. "...that he volunteered to go on a foreign assignment for his paper..."

London was getting an even worse feeling after he said that. "Where to?"

He just sighed again. "Afghanistan..."

She hung her head before shaking it back and forth. "I can't believe this! What a complete idiot!"

"Well, I imagine Trevor was pretty upset about about everything and wondering why Maddie broke up with him out of the blue like that. After what happened to me and Maya, I can kind of understand what he was thinking..."

London cut him off. "Not him! I was talking about Maddie!" She stood up and began pacing. "Well, forget that promise I made to her now! I'm stepping in right now to make sure that child does has a father to come home to it! If something happened to Trevor while he was over there, Maddie would never forgive herself!"

She pulled out her own cell phone and dialed a number. "This is London...Wilfred's daughter." She paused. "Good. I have a big assignment for someone to do immediately. I need someone found, and I need them found yesterday!"

_New Haven_

On that same Friday evening, Bailey, Cody, Tapeworm and Gertie had just gotten done having dinner in the dining hall, and they all decided to go out and see a movie afterwards. But before they headed out, Gertie remembered that she hadn't checked her mail for the day yet. And while they were down by the mailboxes, Bailey was surprised to see she had something in hers. When she had checked it right after lunch, she was pretty sure she had gotten everything out of it then. So, shrugging she pulled it out to see what it said. And she was even more surprised when she saw they there wan't a return address on it.

"Okay, this is really odd..."

Cody looked over her shoulder. "I thought it was illegal to send a letter nowadays with no return address. You know, after all those anthrax scares after 9/11..."

She paused. "It is...Which makes this even more curious as to what's inside. But I'm going to wait until I have a mask and gloves on. You guys mind if we head back up to our room real quick?"

No one did, they all headed up to Bailey and Cody's room where Bailey got out a surgical mask and Cody's yellow gloves. Slowly, she opened the envelope, and was surprised to see what was inside of it. There were several pictures of Cody and Gertie out somewhere together by themselves.

"What the feathers?"

Tapeworm frowned. "Why would someone send you pictures of Cody and Gertie together?" He paused. "Where was I when these were taken?"

When she heard his questions, Gertie was getting a sinking feeling in her stomach that her Christmas surprise was about to be ruined. If push came to shove, she wasn't about to lie to him about it. And just when she was about to speak up, she heard Cody begin talking instead.

"You were in class then, Man. And Bailey was over at student health getting her flu shot..." He faked a sigh. "From the shirt I'm wearing in them, I know these were taken last Friday. That was the afternoon when I asked Gertie to do me a huge favor. You see, I had this idea of what I was going to get Bailey for Christmas, but I wasn't quite sure if it would be something that she would like. So, I asked Gertie if she would mind giving me a woman's perspective on it..." Cody faked another sigh. "Unfortunately, she didn't think Bailey would like it all that much, so I'm back to square one in trying to figure out what to get her for Christmas..."

Bailey winked and smiled at him knowing that he had just helped their friend dodge a big bullet. "Its okay, Sweetie. I truly appreciate the thought, and I'll know I love whatever it is you end up getting me."

Gertie spoke up too. "Yeah, sorry I couldn't have been more helpful. But if you find something else, I'd be more than happy to help you out with it too. I wouldn't worry about this though. Sometimes, you can have the best intentions, and things don't work out the way you hope you will..."

Tapeworm just laughed. "If it makes you feel any better, Man, I'm still trying to find the perfect gift for Gertie for Christmas too. Tell you what, one weekend we'll head out together and see if maybe us working together will help us out. Besides, the pictures don't show where you guys were, so whatever it was you did have in mind can safely stay a secret..." He turned to Gertie and teased her. "Now as for you, did you ask Cody to return the favor and help you with anything for me while you were out?"

She let out a nervous laugh. "Of course not. Unlike you, I have already found my Christmas gift for you. But, I did mention it to Cody, and he did seem to think you would really like it..."

He smiled. "Well, then I can't wait to see what you came up with..." Tapeworm paused. "But that still leaves the million dollar question. Who would someone send those pictures to Bailey and why? The only reason I can think of would be to cause some trouble. But whoever it was doesn't really know you guys that well then if they though that..."

Cody just shook his head and sighed for real. "Oh, I think I have a pretty good idea who sent them, and I'm willing to bet anything that his intent was to try to cause problems..."

"Who?"

Cody gritted his teeth. "Theo..."

"Theo?" Tapeworm gave him a look. "Wait a minute! You aren't talking about that same creep from Boston that you and Zack told me about are you?"

"Unfortunately, I am...Seems he is now a student here at Yale, but going by the name Rob..." As concisely as he could, Cody filled them in on his and Bailey's encounters with him so far.

Bailey shook her head. "I think you're right, Cody. I can't think of anyone else who would go to the trouble of trying to do something like this..." She paused. "Well, there is one other person, but I don't think he is smart enough to even come up with something like this. And if it was Theo, this definitely means he's ramped things up a little bit from just being a sleazeball. But wouldn't he think that I would ask you about these? And didn't he think you would tell me the truth and explain them? I must say, despite being able to get into Yale, I don't think he has much common sense..."

Cody sighed again. "I know. Of course, when he sees that this didn't work, he'll definitely try to escalate his plans even further in the future. By doing this now, it sure seems like Theo isn't one to give up on something once his mind is set on it..."

"What do we do then?"

He shrugged. "I don't know, Bails...I really don't know. I just wish we knew what all he was capable of so we would know what he might try next. If we did, we could..." Before Cody could finish his thought, they all heard strange noises coming from Cody and Bailey's home office. Both of them looked at each other before hurrying in there to see what was going on. And to their relief, the noises were coming from the fax machine part of Cody's new high tech printer. It began spitting out pages at them, and they collected them to see what they had to say.

Cody laughed. "Ask, and ye shall receive! Bails, this is the report from Mr. Tipton's private investigator!"

And once they knew what they were looking at, they began poring over it to see what it said. Unfortunately, neither one of them could believe what they were reading. It seems Theo had only gotten worse as he had gotten older, and Bailey realized that Cody may not have been so far off when he compared Theo to Ted Bundy after all. When they finally finished reading the whole report, both turned to look at each other with somber expressions on their faces.

"Bails..."

"Cody..."

Cody shook his head. "Well, I guess we know know what Theo's capable of now..."

Bailey nodded a little uneasy. "Yeah, we do..."

Both just stood there thinking when Cody finally spoke up again. "Well, look at the positives. We know to be on high alert around him now and some of the tricks he might try..."

"I guess..." She paused. "You really think he'll try to...you know?"

He nodded sadly. "I wouldn't put it past him..." She smiled at her. "But that doesn't mean he's going to succeed. I won't let him." He laughed. "Besides, if he does try it, I think its safe to say we know when he's going to try it..."

She looked at him for a moment in confusion before it dawned on her too. "Halloween!"

"Exactly! What better time to hopefully find someone with their guard down then when they are blowing off some steam at a party..."

Bailey sighed. "Looks like another Halloween where our focus will be elsewhere..."

"I know, but if you're up to doing some more acting, I think I have an idea."

"Good. What can we do to help?"

Cody and Bailey both turned to see their friends standing in the doorway smiling at them Bailey shook her head. "We can't ask you two to get involved with his. Anyways, if we're right and he chooses Halloween, that will be your anniversary..."

Gertie smiled. "We know, but we'll celebrate the day after like we usually do. Besides, we're not asking you to help. We're telling you that we're going to help. So, just tell us what you need us to do..."

Cody grinned again. "Thanks guys. Now, I do have a plan. I may need to flesh it out some more, but we fortunately have three more weeks to perfect it. First off, sorry, Tapeworm, but I going to need you to make some changes to the costumes for both of you. I need you two to be recognizable, so I can't have you wearing masks or anything else to disguise your identities. Next, Gertie, here is what I need you to do..." He wrapped his arm around her shoulder and explained to her what her role was going to be.

She smiled again and laughed. "Consider it done!"

Tapeworm spoke up again. "What do you need me to do then?"

Cody grinned. "You, my friend, I have a couple of jobs for you that will require your unique talent and abilities..." He did the same thing to Tapeworm as he did to Gertie and filled him in on what he needed him to do..."

Tapeworm couldn't help but laugh too. "I like it!" He paused. "Man, I bet Moseby is glad now that you didn't actually help Zack with his schemes when we were younger. Cody, I'm just glad your my friend and won't ever have to scheme against me..."

Bailey smiled. "Well, this wasn't the first good idea he's ever come up with. He did save my family's farm from Mr. Tipton..."

Cody smiled at her. "My first good one was deciding to chase after you..." He paused. "Alright, lets head to that movie. Tomorrow, we begin putting this in to motion." He shook his head and laughed. "I love it when a plan comes together!"

Bailey sighed and rolled her eyes. "Not that again..."

_Boston_

The next three weeks passed by, and it was finally Friday, October 31st - Halloween. All around the country, college students were preparing for a night of letting their hair down and getting a little crazy. And that was the plan the Zack and Maya had for the evening - with one slight modification. They were limiting themselves to two drinks a piece all night. Neither one of them had any desire to have a repeat performance of their birthday celebrations. While it may have seemed fun that night, the resulting hangover was not worth it. Their plan for the evening was to head to a Halloween party thrown by one of BU's fraternities to be held at a popular establishment near campus. And this year, Zack was quite happy with their costumes as he didn't want to literally look like a clown again. Rather, they were going dressed as Bonnie and Clyde, and Moseby had even said he couldn't think of a more appropriate costume for them. Once they got down to the lobby, they were about to head out towards the subway, when Zack realized something.

He sighed. "Maya, I'll be right back. I left my plastic Tommy gun upstairs. This costume just isn't complete without it..."

She smiled and nodded at him before she began walking around the lobby. And that's when she too noticed that Maddie was over at the candy counter. So, Maya walked over there to see how she was doing.

"So, Maddie, what's your costume this year?"

Maddie turned to Maya, and it was evident she had her hands full of candy bars. Shaking her head, She sighed. "This is it...I'm going as a pregnant woman who is having a serious craving for chocolate...Pretty pathetic, huh?"

Maya smiled. "Well, if it helps any, I think you've got your costume nailed. So, what are your plans for your Halloween night?"

"You're looking at it. I'm going to head back up to London's penthouse, lay back on the couch and watch some classic horror movies on TV while I scarf these down."

"You sure? If you want, you're more than welcome to head out with Zack and I tonight. This party were going to is supposed to be a lot of fun."

Maddie smiled. "I appreciate the offer, but I don't think so. I can't drink, and the smell of alcohol will probably make me throw up. Besides, I'm already exhausted as it is. I seriously doubt I'd be too much fun to hang out with. But, you two have a good time..." She laughed. "But not too much of one..."

Maya laughed too. "Trust me...after the way we celebrated our birthdays, it will be a long time before either of us does anything like that again. I've learned I quite like being in complete control of all my facilities. Tonight, we're limiting ourselves to two drinks a piece."

"Good for you then. I think that's a lesson everyone has to learn at least once in their life the hard way."

"Well, done and done here. But, if you change your mind, just give one of us a call, and we'd be happy to tell you how to get there..."

"I think it best I stay in tonight. I'm not quite ready to subject my unborn child to a college party..."

Just then, the elevator door opened with Zack inside. Maddle hurried over to catch it herself, and smiled at them. "I'll see you guys later."

And with that, the elevator doors closed. Zack shrugged and walked over to Maya.

"You ready to head out?"

She nodded. "Yeah, lets get out of here." She paused. "I was just talking to Maddie. She seems to be doing pretty well."

"Good. Hopefully, she'll be even better once we get Trevor back here with her. I just hope we can find him before anything bad happens."

Maya just looked at him. "We? What are you talking about and what have you been up to, Zack?"

Zack paused realizing he had let something else slip. "Maya, I can't say..."

She rolled her eyes, shook her head and pulled him in for another kiss. "Tell me now?'

He sighed. "Fine...I really wish you didn't know you could do that though..." And briefly, Zack filled Maya in on what he and London had been up to and what they had found out so far.

Naturally, Maya's eyes went wide. "He's in Afghanistan!"

He nodded. "Yeah. But London has some of her father's best men on his trail. I'm just hoping they can find him sooner than later."

"Me too..." She shivered. "This situation keeps getting even crazier and more messed up."

"Tell me about it. London and I have both accepted that Maddie could be really ticked off at us, but if that's the price to pay..."

"Zack, you two are doing the right thing here. Hopefully, Maddie will understand that."

"I hope so too."

"You think he'll be found soon?"

Zack shrugged. "I have no idea, Maya. But, if Mr. Tipton can make someone disappear that easily, I have to hope that he's just as good at making someone reappear..."

_In a Dorm Room in Berkeley _South

Halloween night had arrived on Yale's campus too, and everyone was getting ready for the big Mortician's Ball that evening. In his private dorm room, Theo was dressed up in scrubs with blood splattered all over them as he hadn't had time to go out and get a proper costume. But, his attention had been focused elsewhere, and he was pacing back and forth in his room talking on the phone discussing what had gotten him so distracted.

"Yeah, tonight's the night I put my ultimate plan into action. Ordinarily, I would rather not have to resort to these measures again, but my first few plans seemed to have failed miserably. I started off by trying to flirt with her, but that didn't work. Then I tried to build up doubt in her mind about Martin, but that was a dead end too. I even tried my old reliable method of plying her with expensive gifts, but she refused to accept them. In fact, she chewed me out again and made it clear that our study sessions were about organic chemistry and nothing else. She said if tried talking about her personal life or badmouthed the geek again, she would stop tutoring me. Unfortunately, that class is kicking my butt, and I actually do need her help studying..." He sighed. "She's different that most of girls down at Princeton. And for some unknown reason, she really does seem to love the nerd boy and spend the rest of her life with him..."

Theo shook his head. "No, your idea sucked too. I hired a PI to find dirt on Martin, but he found nothing. The only time they weren't together is when she was helping out a friend of them shop for a computer or working out with her boyfriend. I sent the pictures of them together, but I knew it would never work..."

"The friend? Nah, I don't dare. Her family is loaded too and has even more connections than mine does. I know where to pick my battles. And the girl nerd boy is tutoring has a boyfriend the size of a bulldozer, and I don't have a death wish. No, I'm sticking to my original plan here. At first, it was just going to be fun, but now its gotten personal..."

He laughed. "Nah, I'm not worried about them trying to get any kind of payback on me. For one, my connections would get me out of it again. And second, she's just a country bumpkin, and nerd boy is...well...nerd boy. Besides, with what I have planned, I seriously doubt there will be a 'them' once they feel my full wrath. They're going to learn that you don't piss off Theo Cavanaugh and get away with it..."

_Cody and Bailey's Dorm Room_

The past three weeks had been really busy ones for Cody and Bailey. Sure, they had a three day fall break during that time, but they spent most of it finishing and editing their rough drafts of their EP&E papers to hand in to Dr. Ryan. And with those now done, they used their Fridays to work on their group projects in both of their food and computers class. Cody had even convinced Bailey to have the focus of their computer one be something right up their professor's alley.

Bailey still kept up with her tutoring of Rob aka Theo, but it made her skin crawl every time to be in a room alone with him. She always left her keys out so she could grab her small can of mace if she needed it. Plus, she and Gertie had learned a few new moves in their class that she was kind of anxious to try out. The only good thing was that Theo has seemingly agreed to keep everything on a professional level. But, Bailey was well aware of the old saying about the calm before the storm. However, in those three weeks, Cody and Bailey decided to have their first measure of payback on Theo. His second exam in organic chemistry had been the Friday before Halloween, and they decided to mess with him in regards to it. Bailey never told him anything wrong, but she did subtly emphasize certain areas that would not be as heavily tested on as opposed to other far more important things. Of course, to cover herself, she did remind him to make sure he was comfortable with everything that could be covered on the exam.

Finally, the night of Halloween arrived, and Cody and Bailey were both finishing up putting on their costumes for their final Mortician's Ball that evening. When Cody finished adjusting his costume, he turned to Bailey and smiled.

"What do you think? How do I look?"

She could only shake her head and laugh. He had on a purple zippered sweatshirt with padding underneath it to make it look like he had a large gut. On his head, he had on a bald cap with hair glued along the sides and back. Finally, there was a pair of skinny jeans with numerous paternity suits shoved into the back pockets. "Looking good, Sweetie. I definitely think you've pulled off Beiber at 50..."

"Thanks, Bails. I'm just glad I finally have a good reason to wear a bald cap again..."

"I know, but at least you didn't do what Woody did and actually shave your head."

"True. Knowing my luck, I'd have a birthmark on the back of my head..."

She laughed and slapped his butt. "I doubt it. We both know where your birthmark is..."

He grinned at her. "Am I allowed to slap where yours is?"

"Nope...not now anyways..."

"Fine then..." He grinned again as he took in her costume. There was the blond wig that had streaks of gray added to it. And there was the t-shirt that said 'Comeback Tour #4' while the rest of her outfit contained similar touches to make it as close to possible to one formerly worn by the person she was supposed to be mimicking. She even had the fingerless gloves. The only thing that was different was that she had added padding too to make it look like she had really wide hips and a big rear end. Finally, Bailey had added several fake tattoos on her arms and neck. "And I definitely think you've pulled off Hannah Montana at 50 as well..."

Bailey laughed. "Thanks...I think. I still shudder when I think how crazy I got around her that one time..."

"It happens..." He paused as he tried to walk around. "Now answer me this. Why did I ever wear skinny jeans? These things are as uncomfortable as can be, and I think I'm beginning to lose feeling in my legs...and other places..."

She laughed again. "Because it was the fad, Cody. Just like bell bottoms in the 70's, member's only jackets and leg warmers in the 80's, and flannel shirts in the 90's. Fortunately, it quickly disappeared just like the other ones did."

He grimaced. "Thank goodness."

She paused herself. "So, how come you didn't choose that girl Beiber used to date for me to dress like?"

Cody shrugged. "I never had a problem with her...you know...other than her taste in men. Besides, she kind of reminded me of this girl I went to middle school with."

"Yeah, the funny thing is she always reminded me of that girl I met on the boat during the teen cruise. I don't think I ever caught what her real name was though..."

"Well, you ready for tonight?"

Bailey nodded. "Yeah, I'm ready." She smiled at him. "But after this, you can't say our kids will only get their devious genes from my side of the family..."

At that moment, there was a knock at their door. And when they opened it up, they saw Tapeworm standing there dressed up like Peter Parker (with his shirt unbuttoned to show his Spider-Man costume) and Mary Jane Watson. But when Tapeworm and Gertie saw Cody's and Bailey's costumes, they both began laughing so hard they were almost crying.

"Oh wow...those two costumes are classics!" Tapeworm shook his head. "Now, why didn't I think of something like that?"

Cody smiled. "Well, I like yours as well. I'm just sorry that you had to change away from Han Solo. Unfortunately for me, I could never pull off that one. With blonde hair, I'm more of the Luke Skywalker type. And Luke and Leia together would be kind of creepy since their brother and sister..."

Tapeworm nodded. "Yeah, I always thought it was unfair to Luke that the only woman in that galaxy far far away turned out to be his sister. Of course, in the expanded universe, he married Mara Jade, but hardly anyone else would have any idea who she was..."

"Tell me about it..."

Gertie rolled her eyes. "Are you guys about done? Its about time to get this show on the road..."

Bailey nodded. "Gertie's right." She paused and smiled. "But first, happy anniversary to you two. Two whole years now."

She smiled. "Yeah, it has. Best two years of my life."

Tapeworm grinned. "Mine too."

Cody nodded. "Alright guys, lets do this!"

Tapeworm paused. "Before we do though...Cody, how in the world did you ever come up with a plan like this?"

He grinned. "Easy. I give full credit to my Mom for this idea..."

That surprised Gertie. "Your Mom?"

"Uh huh. You see, Mom has this unhealthy obsession with George Clooney. Thanks to that, she made Zack and I watch all of his movies..."

___To be Continued..._


	14. Martin's Four

_Episode 14_

_"__Martin's Four"_

_I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did._

_Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them._

_Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves._

_And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so..._

_New Haven_

By nine o'clock that evening, the Mortician's Ball was in full effect once again. And like usual, a large number of Yale students were using it as an excuse to forget about their studies and regular lives for one night while they dressed up and acted like idiots. As was the norm at this party, there was a vast array of costumes ranging from the macabre to the hilarious to the scandalous. And even though their costumes were not intended to be all that gruesome, Cody and Bailey both had numerous people come up to them and tell them that their costumes were both the scariest and funniest things they had ever seen. After being there for about an hour and a half, they were beginning to think that Theo wasn't going to show up after all. However, Cody reminded her not to let their guards down as he didn't think Theo could resist the temptation of that evening's festivities. But he did smile when he suggested that they continue to act normal and actually have some fun. And as a show of that, he asked her for her hand out on the dance floor. Naturally, she took him up on his offer, and they headed out to cut a rug.

As they swayed to the music, Bailey smiled at him. "You think we'll have the time to something like this next year in Boston?"

Cody shrugged. "I don't know. I guess it will depend on what kind of workload we'll have and what kind of restraints we'll have on our time. But, I certainly hope we'll have the chance - even if it will be your turn to pick out our costumes again..."

Bailey laughed. "Well, something tells me I'll have trouble topping the ones you chose for us this year..." She paused before smiling at him. "Either way, I'm just glad Harvard is well aware that we plan on being married by the time we start there next fall. I was relieved when we got the letter in the mail from them that us being married would be guarantee us having the same schedules for our first two years."

"Tell me about it. Not getting to have you as a study partner would have absolutely sucked! I mean, after almost seven years, I like to think that we're a well oiled machine." He paused. "You know, I guess I'm so used to us studying together for everything now that I think I began to take it for granted..."

"Don't feel too bad. I know I have too, but I've come to view it as one of those things in my life that I view as a certainty. But, we should always be grateful that we have that going for us. Besides, Cody, we should also be grateful that everything is falling into place for us next year with us having our wedding planned and medical school chosen. As far as I can tell, all we have left to do is find a place near the medical school for us to live..." She teased him. "I mean, if we're going to keep studying together, we need to find us a place where we can do that..."

Cody laughed. "I get it. I can take a hint. How's this? We'll go look again at places again while we're back in Boston for Thanksgiving. And to be on the safe side, we really should try to have some place secured for us for next August before we come back to school." He leaned in and kissed her. "Then we'll have nothing left on our to do list which will lead to a hopefully stress free final semester." He paused. "Assuming tonight goes how we expect it to..."

"I sure hope you're right. With our wedding having already been planned and our honeymoon already taken care of as well, finding a place to live is the last thing major thing on our list of things to do." Bailey paused. "Well, except for registering for our wedding, but London said she would take us to do that after the first of the year..."

Cody just pulled her closer to him. "Are you sure you're still okay with us not taking our honeymoon until several weeks after our wedding?"

She smiled at him again. "Sweetie, I'm positive. It just makes the most sense to do it this way. We'll come back from Hawaii, finish working through the end of July, and then we'll go on our honeymoon right before school starts next August. Plus, that means we'll already be moved into our new place when we get back from it. And in the few weeks in between, we can take care of those other little things like getting my name legally changed to Bailey Martin, getting a new driver's license, social security and credit cards, merging our individual accounts into joint one and writing all of our thank you notes from our wedding gifts. That way, we'll be ready to focus all of our attention on orientation and the beginning of school."

He nodded. "Yeah, I guess that's true. And, that should mean we have nice tans when we show up to orientation..." He smiled. "And Bails, trust me, while I'm looking forward to our wedding in Hawaii, having some time all alone with my new wife without all of our families and friends around won't bother me in the least..."

"Me either. Plus, we'll be well rested and refreshed when we get back."

Cody laughed. "Rested and refreshed? I don't know about all of that! We may spend an inordinate amount of time in our room, but I seriously doubt we'll be resting too much..."

Bailey laughed too. "Well, I guess that's true as well. Now, I..." But before she could finish her thought, she felt someone tap her on her shoulder. Turning around, she saw Theo standing wearing his costume of scrubs covered with fake blood. And from the expression on his face, Cody and Bailey could tell he wasn't too happy about something. They just looked at each other and gave the slight nod indicating that it was now go time. Bailey plastered a fake smile on her face. "Hello, Rob...nice costume."

"Yeah, thanks. Look, Bailey, I really need to talk to you about something important. I got my second organic chemistry exam back today in class, and I got a C+ on it! I realize you advised me to make sure I was familiar with everything that could be tested on, but the things you seemed to emphasize the most were nowhere to be found on it! Do you have any idea what happened?"

She just smiled inwardly as she shrugged her shoulders on the outside. "I don't know what to tell you, Rob. I told you everything I remember being heavily focused on on our second exam. But, like you said, I did remind you not to rely on that to the exclusion of everything else. I mean, that's what Cody and I always do. Even with old practice tests, we never assume we'll know what a professor will choose to cover. Plus, even though you have the same professor that we did, you had to realize he would change things up every so often. I mean, if I were a professor, that's what I'd do..."

Cody nodded. "Same here. No sense in letting students get complacent. We're here for an education, not the easy way out."

Bailey agreed. "Exactly. Look, I'm sorry this exam didn't turn out that well for you. A C+ will be hard to overcome and still get an A in the class. I just hope there was a nice curve..."

Theo frowned. "Yeah, tell me about it! I'm pretty much going to have to ace the third test and the final to have any chance to get an A now. And anything lower than an A in a class as important as organic chemistry will not look good to the kind of medicals schools I'm looking to attend. So, I'm really going to need your help studying the rest of the semester. Is there anyway we can meet more than twice a week from here on?"

Bailey faked a sigh. "Actually, now that you bring it up, I need to talk to you about that very thing. Seems like you weren't the only one to get bad news regarding one of their classes today. Cody and I both got our rough drafts of our EP&E senior papers back today too. Professor Ryan didn't care for them at all and wants us both to do complete rewrites of them. If you add having to do that with finishing up our our final projects in our other classes and continuing to do our experiments for our Biology senior project, neither one of us is going to have any extra free time whatsoever. We decided we we're going to have to cut out some activities, and tutoring was the first to go. This afternoon, we spoke to Master Chun, and he completely understands our predicament. He said he'd try to find you another tutor if you still needed one. I'm really sorry for having to do this to you on such short notice, but, if it makes you feel any better, its not like I will be sitting home doing nothing. In fact, Cody and I are probably going to spend most of our Thanksgiving break trying to get everything done that we need to get done. My academics are just way too important to me not to give them my sole attention right now. So, again...sorry."

Theo felt his anger growing about that, but he knew he had to keep his cool. Sure, Bailey's reason for dropping their study sessions sounded reasonable, but it wasn't going to help him get his grade back up. And thinking about all that extra studying he was going to have to do now just made him even angrier. And while he was seething on the inside, he tried to calm himself down by remembering that by the end of the night, there was going to be a whole lot more wrong in their worlds than in his. Of course, with all the extra organic chem work he was going to have to do, he realized he preparedness for his other, less meaningful classes might suffer. But that's when he began formulating another plan that might alleviate that problem. It was so perfect, he felt like patting himself on the back. So, while he laughed on the inside, he just shrugged his shoulders.

"This sucks, but I understand. When it comes to your studies, you got to do what you got to do. I really do appreciate all of your help you've given so far." He smiled at her. "How about a dance together as a good way for us to part ways?"

Bailey shook her head, wrapped her arm around Cody's waist and smiled. "No thank you. My dance card for the evening is already full. Cody already has all the spots taken. But good luck to you the rest of your semester..." And under her breath, she mumbled. "You're going to need it..."

Theo just shrugged again and walked away. Cody and Bailey watched him walk away until they saw him disappear into the crowd. And once he was far enough away, Bailey turned back to Cody and whispered. "Okay, this is all happening just like you thought it would!"

He smiled and whispered back. "I know. But, its not over yet. He thinks he still has an ace up his sleeve, but he doesn't know we stacked the deck. And now, he's a little upset. And now that he's upset, I'll bet he gets a little sloppy. But he's not going to back down now. I can almost guarantee he will make his other move before the night is up..."

"I know, but we'll be ready for it." She stopped and laughed. "I admit, I ordinarily don't like lying to people, but that was kind of fun."

"Well, it wasn't a complete and total lie..."

"True. Our EP&E sponsor did give us back our rough drafts today with changes to make, but they were only cosmetic ones that dealt with the flow of the papers rather than the actual subject matter of them. We should be able to finish those up in a couple of hours next Friday."

He smiled. "That's if we even want to make them. Professor Ryan did say they were already worthy of A's as they were, but the changes could make us frontrunners for some departmental honors."

Bailey just looked at him. "As if we wouldn't go for those!"

Cody laughed. "I know. And we just have to do some final editing to our Food project as well, and then it will be done too. We can finish it up next Friday as well. The week after that, I say we stop Professor Brownell's office to show him what we have so far and see if he has any changes he'd like to see us make."

She leaned in and kissed him. "Good idea. And, it was true that we did stop by and talk to Master Chun again. And after we showed him the private investigator's report on Theo, he was aghast. He had no problems with me stopping tutoring Theo. In fact, after what he knows now, I wonder if he will assign him anyone new at all now..."

"I don't know. But, Trixie did seem pretty happy about having two tutors now instead of one. I'm glad she was agreeable to moving our study sessions up to our room from here on..."

Bailey laughed again. "Oh, I don't think she was the one who had a problem with that. Getting Ox to agree was the tricky part. But we finally convinced him that with me around, you'd never try any funny business..."

Cody shook his head. "I guess. No offense to Trixie though, but the only funny business I'd have in mind would be after she left and I had you all to myself again..."

She leaned in and kissed him again. "I like the way you think, Honey. And of course, after next Friday, we're going to have nothing to do on Fridays from here on. Think we'll know what to do with ourselves with a day off?"

He grinned as he kissed her back. "Oh, I think we'll find something to keep us busy."

Another hour passed, and the clock was quickly approaching the witching hour. All around them, their fellow classmates kept drinking more and more and making even bigger idiots of themselves. But Cody and Bailey were content to just kept dancing with each other and enjoying their evening. That's not to say they weren't on high alert though. They knew the next time they saw Theo was probably when he would begin to next part of his plan. So, right at midnight, they noticed him walking towards them holding two cups in his hands.

"Here, I brought you guys a couple of cups of punch as a small token of my appreciation for all of your help this semester..."

Cody shook his head as he declined the cup offered to him. "Sorry, I can't. I'm on some cold medication right now, and its not a good idea for me to mix alcohol with it. I appreciate the offer though..."

Bailey took the cup extended to her and thanked Theo. She turned back to Cody and smiled. "How about we make a toast to us? This time next year, we'll be married and in medical school. May our futures be bright and full of love and joy..." She spoke a little louder. "May we always have a BONANZA of good fortune..."

And upon her uttering the word 'bonanza', part two of Cody's plan was put into motion. Bailey was about to sip her drink when she felt something wet on her back. Shrieking at how cold it was, she realized someone had spilled a cup of punch on to her from behind. Turning around, she saw a very tall person dressed as Chewbacca holding up his hands and saying 'Sorry' in a voice muffled by his mask. Bailey began berating him for being so clumsy when he just turned around and disappeared back into the crowd.

Bailey shook her head. "What a jerk! That idiot just poured his drink on my beck, and my costume is ruined now!"

Cody tried to use some of his 'paternity suits' to wipe off and pat the back of her shirt. "Here. Let me see if I can help some, Sweetie."

She sighed. "I appreciate the help, Cody Bear, but I think I'm going to have to go to the bathroom. I think I remember there being an air dryer in there. I'll be back as soon as I can get my shirt to dry." And with that, Bailey headed off into the crowd towards the bathroom.

Of course, the recent turn of events put Theo in an even fouler mood. "Well, that was rude! That guy just ran off and ruined a perfectly good toast!"

Cody shrugged. "Its no big deal. This is a party, and party fouls do tend to happen."

That didn't appease Theo as he just starting shaking his head. "Stupid Wookie..."

Cody laughed and patted him on the back. "Easy there, big fella. Don't forget what Star Wars taught us - if you make a Wookie mad, they're likely to rip your arms off. Anyways, I'm going to head over to the bathrooms myself, and I'll just wait for Bailey there. You have fun tonight."

Another hour later, Cody was pacing back and forth outside of the bathroom, and he had an extremely worried look on his face. And about that same time, Theo was heading to the men's room himself when he saw Cody.

"Are you here still waiting to get into the bathroom?"

He shook his head. "No, I'm waiting on Bailey. She's yet to come back out from drying off her shirt yet, and I'm starting to get pretty worried. I've been trying to find someone I know to go in and see if she's alright, but I haven't seen any other girls that I know yet..."

Theo paused to think. He had assumed that his plan had gone up in flames earlier, but maybe it was still alive and well after all. "I'm sure she's fine, but I'll keep an eye out for her too. Why don't you go get you something to drink, and and I'll keep a watch here for her?"

Before Cody could say anything, Bailey came stumbling out of the bathroom and threw her arms around his shoulder to steady herself. "Cody Bear...I don't feel so well."

Cody turned so he could get a good look at her. "Bails? What happened? Are you alright?"

She swallowed. "I don't know. I was drying my shirt, and I began sipping the punch that Rob gave me. Suddenly, I began feeling very nauseous..."

"You think there were strawberries in the punch? You're allergic to strawberries!"

She closed her eyes and shook her head. "I don't know, Sweetie...I just know I don't feel very good..."

He tightened his hold of her. "Come on, Bails. Lets get you over to the Emergency Room right away! I just want to make sure you're okay..."

Theo's eyes went wide when he heard that, but Bailey shook her head. "No, I just want to go home and climb in to bed. Even if it was strawberries, it will pass soon enough. Please, just take me home, Cody?"

Cody paused before finally nodding his head. "Alright. Come on, Honey. Lets get you home and into bed."

Both bid Theo a good night before making their way out of the party and back to the dorm. And once they were gone, Theo patted his chest believing he had just dodged a huge bullet. Cody taking her to the emergency room was the last thing he wanted to see happen. If the doctors had pumped her stomach...well, Theo didn't want to think about how much trouble there could have been if they had. Back at Berkeley North, Cody was helping Bailey up the steps and to the door of the dorm suite. Once he got the door open, he helped her inside before situating her on the futon. After closing the door, he walked back over and sat down next to her.

"Bails, are you alright?"

She looked over at him and and grinned. "I feel perfectly fine! You know, after all the acting we've done tonight, I seriously think we should have considered minors in theater!"

He laughed. "I don't think so. After my last foray into it, I've decided to give it up for good."

"Well, the script you wrote for tonight totally makes up for the flop that was your last one. And Cody, you were exactly right about what he was going to try tonight. Everything happened just the way you had predicted it would..."

"Well, it wasn't too hard to figure out. All we had to do is follow his blueprint from Princeton. I guess he figured no one here knew about it so he was safe to repeat it."

At the moment, they both heard a knock at their door, and Cody got up to see who it was. After checking the peephole and making sure it wasn't Theo again, he opened the door. And into their room walked Chewbacca and an Ewok. Once inside and the door locked again, both removed their masks and revealed themselves to be Tapeworm and Gertie.

Cody grinned. "Excellent work you two! Everything went exactly according to plan!"

"Good." Tapeworm grinned. "I have to admit, coming back here to change costumes mid party was kind of strange, but no one there had any idea who we were..." He turned to Gertie and winked at her. "And you? I used to always think _Return of the Jedi_ was ruined by the Ewoks, but after seeing you dressed as one, I may have to reconsider my stance on that..."

Cody turned to Gertie himself. "Do you have it?"

She grinned, and pulled a plastic cup of her pouch that had been sealed with a lid to keep all of its contents inside. "I have it right here! And I also have the continuous footage I took on my phone of Theo from the time he got the cups, of him adding his secret ingredient into them both, of him giving one to Bailey, and of me following Bailey to the bathroom where we sealed it. I even have footage of Bailey removing the tape from her fingers to explain why her fingerprints aren't on it too. I've got it all!"

Cody grinned too. "Excellent! We'll have to drop it off at the campus police station first thing in the morning..." He turned back to Tapeworm. "Shall we see how your little invention is working?"

_In Berkeley South_

Back in his own dorm room in Berkeley South, Theo was once again pacing back and forth while on his cell phone.

"No, it didn't work out like I had planned tonight! I'm here talking to you, aren't I?"

He sighed. "Everything that could go wrong, did go wrong. She was just about to drink it when some idiot spilled a drink on her. After that, she immediately headed to the bathroom to dry it out. She did end up drinking it while she was in the bathroom, but nerd boy was waiting for her outside of it the entire time. I never got the chance to even have a second alone with her! And when he went and mentioned the words 'emergency room', I almost soiled myself!"

Theo shook his head. "I don't know where I'm going to go from here. She also dropped me from tutoring due to her own schoolwork, so I'm going to have to buckle down on this organic chemistry BS. I'll be studying nonstop for it and nothing else for the next few weeks. But, in the meantime, I do have a little something I'm going to let them do for me to help me out. They're in another class of mine that has a big group project. Right now, I don't have time to do one myself, so I'm going to stop by the professor's office on Monday and tell him I'm part of their group." He laughed. "I'll just let those two nerds do all the work and get me an easy 'A' in there without doing anything..."

He shook his head. "Nah, if I do this right, they'll never know what I did. But right now, I need to go flush the rest of the Rohypnol you sent me. I didn't use all of it when I laced their drinks, and I'll be damned if I have any of it laying around if nerd boy changes his mind about taking her to the emergency room. But, I will be needing you to send me some of that other stuff. Get it too much before Thanksgiving break. We'll make so much money on people freaking out about the semester ending that it will be ridiculous..."

"Good. I'll talk to you later..."

_Cody's and Bailey's Dorm Room_

Back in Cody and Bailey's room, everyone was sitting around Tapeworm's laptop as they all just listened to everything Theo had just said. Once he had hung up his cell phone, they heard a door slam shut, and Tapeworm clicked a button and grinned.

"There you go. All recorded, and I'm going to send you a copy of the audio file right now."

Cody nodded. "Thanks, Man..." He turned to Bailey. "Seems like Theo just never quite learns, does he?"

Bailey smiled at him. "No, but that will only make his downfall even sweeter..." She began laughing. "I still can't believe you thought to attach a listening device to him. I know you were a spy once before, but you really took it to a whole another level this time. I mean, if you didn't have an aversion to harsh cotton fibers, you could be looking at a career with the CIA, Sweetie..."

He laughed too. "I guess Zack was right. I could be a spy if I wanted to." He then grinned. "But I wouldn't want to be away from you if I had to go on a mission..."

Bailey grinned right back at him. "You wouldn't have to because I'd be right there with you! All of this spy business has been completely exhilarating! Not only do we have proof of him committing several crimes, we also have proof of him planning several more as well as committing academic fraud. We definitely need to stop by and see Professor Brownell in the next few weeks. And after what else we heard, I think we should advise the campus police to wait until just before Thanksgiving so they can catch him red handed with that other stuff he was talking about..."

"Good idea. And with the pull you have with them after busting Kyle, I think they'll listen."

She paused and shook her head again. "Theo must really have thought we were idiots. Its like I said our freshmen years, I'd never accept an open drink from someone I don't know. You never know what could be inside of it..."

Cody nodded. "I know. And you'll never know how much restraint it took me tonight not to kick his butt right then and there. For everything he's tried to do to us, I want to do something very, very bad to him. I guess this is how Zack was feeling when he heard about that hockey player at BU..."

"I know, and we will make sure something very bad happens to him, Cody. But I'm fine, and by the time we're done with him, he'll wish he never met us..."

_Boston_

The following day brought with it the official change from October to November. But in Boston, the change in calendar didn't change anything. While Zack still spent his mornings working and afternoons in school, he constantly kept in contact with London to see if there was any word on Trevor. But for the first two weeks in November, there wasn't any. So, Zack and Maya did everything they could to keep Maddie's spirits as high as possible until there was. On Mondays through Thursdays, Zack would head up to the penthouse and actually walk to work with Maddie, and a couple of nights a week, they would invite her to join them for dinner. Carey did this as well so London would have some free time to spend with Todd. On the Friday two weeks before Thanksgiving, Zack once again stopped by London's penthouse after having lunch with Maya to see if there had been any progress made. And once she let him inside, he looked at her.

"Any word today, London?"

She paused. "Maybe. There might be, but I'm not sure yet..."

The fact that there was change completely caught Zack's attention. "What does that mean exactly?"

"Well, one of Daddy's guys told me that he had heard a rumor of an American journalist that was following around a bunch of Navy Seals over there. Well, since those guys like to keep everything about themselves so hush hush, he hasn't been able to verify if its true yet. And if its true, there's still no guarantee that its Trevor. But, he said he was going to investigate it personally and see what he can find out."

Zack sighed. "Well, at least we now finally have a possible lead. And if he was hanging out with Seals, that would certainly explain why its been so difficult to find him. I was starting to think Trevor was going to be as impossible to locate as Bin Laden was..."

London sighed too. "All I know is that I really hope this is him. Maddie's been wearing me out, and I'm not even the pregnant one! And if its him, he better come home soon! Because in a few weeks, Maddie's twisted my arm and gotten me to volunteer to do something that I would rather not do..."

"What's that?"

London groaned. "Be her coach at Lamaze classes! Maddie is my friend and all, but sitting around doing breathing exercises twice a week is not my idea of fun!"

"But I thought you loved to do that yoga stuff. Isn't that kind of similar?"

She just glared at him. "Not helping!"

He stepped back. "Okay, well, then for your sake as well as Maddie's, I hope this lead works out. And when I walk to work with her every morning, I can tell she feels like she has the weight of the world on her shoulders..."

"We're doing everything we can, Zack. We just have to hope we're due for some good luck. Anyways, lets change the subject to something more positive, okay?" She paused. "Speaking of classes, how is your semester going anyways? You haven't got senioritis and begun slacking off, have you?"

Zack shrugged. "Nah, I'm still keeping up with everything pretty easily. Of course, it doesn't hurt that I have a pretty light semester. So, I should still do alright. I will admit that already having been accepted to grad school, I don't have the same motivation that I once did..."

London nodded. "That's right. I heard that you'd been accepted to BU's graduate school. Congratulations on that. I'm proud of you." She paused. "Are you sure that's what you want to do though? I mean, do you want to stay at BU?"

"Yeah. I mean, after three years, I've gotten to know my way around campus like I knew my way around the boat. Plus, Maya will still be there, so I love that part too. And, to be honest, BU, with some help from you, was willing to take a chance on me when I seriously doubt any other school around here would have..."

London shook her head and laughed. "Tell me about it. Zack, you totally exceeded everyone's expectations with what you've done there. I told Moseby once that BU was a little leery of taking you at first, but when it came time for grad school, they were going to be nervous about whether or not they would be able to hold on to you. I told you I was proud of you, but you should be very proud of yourself..."

Zack smiled. "Thanks, London. I owe you all the credit in the world for giving me the kick in the butt to go for it..." He paused and laughed. "Of course, now that I've shown I can do it, is there a chance we may see you around campus next year?"

She just gave him a look. "Yeah, I don't think so. I may grown up a lot lately, but I still have no desire to go to school ever again. Besides, do you think I'd be lucky enough to get teachers like Tut would would put up with my crap?"

"You know, she wasn't really as bad as we said she was..."

"No, she wasn't..." London began laughing again. "But you know, its kind of too bad if you think about it. I was actually rooting for you to somehow get into Harvard. I think it would be hilarious for you, Cody and Bailey to be going to the same school again..."

He laughed too. "Yeah, considering the two paths we took to get through high school and college, that would have been pretty crazy. And while I still haven't heard back from them yet, I'm assuming they took my application and put it through their shredder and lined a bird cage with it. And if they did, that wouldn't bother me in the least. I'm happy at BU. I have absolutely no problem staying there and continuing to have lunch with Maya everyday."

She paused before smiling. "You know, when Maye came back into your life, I admit that I never thought you two would ever get back together. Now, I'm glad to see that I was wrong. Since you two have been reunited, I've never seen you happier, Zack."

"Thanks, London. I am pretty happy. If if I may return the compliment, I don't know if I've ever seen you happier than when you're with Todd."

"I know. I guess we finally understand why Cody and Bailey always seemed like nothing bothered them when they were together on the boat."

Zack laughed. "Yeah, but it was still fun to make fun of them..."

"I know, but in eight more months, they'll be married."

"True, but you never know. How long after them will it be your turn or mine and Maya's turn?"

She shook her head. "Great. Moseby said he wanted to return the favor and plan mine. But, I guess he does know a few things about love. After all, he was the one who was constantly keeping Maya updated with what was going on with everyone here while she was in Africa..."

That caught Zack by surprise. "That was him? Maya and I thought it might have been you..."

London shook her head. "Nope. Wasn't me."

"Wow..." Zack paused. "Well, I'm glad things are going well for him and Tut...and Cody and Bailey...and you and Todd...and me and Maya. With all of us so happy, it might make for an interesting five year reunion..." He laughed. "...in less that two years. Maybe your Dad will let us have it on the boat?"

"I don't see why not. I'm co-owner of it too!"

"Well, I'm also glad that you and your Dad seem to have a better relationship nowadays. And you're beginning a new one with your mother that seems to be going well too. You know what, London? I'd say we're all pretty lucky..."

She smiled. "Yeah, I guess we are. And like you said, I'm lucky I have Todd too. He's been really supportive of me helping out Maddie so much."

Zack grinned. "I can just see it now...in several years, there will be the great Tipton-St. Mark merger. Two of the largest hotel chains in the country joining forces to eradicate the competition!"

London laughed. "Maybe so. I just hope we can still afford you then."

"That's one thing you won't have to worry about. Its like I told you about BU. London, you took a chance on me when not very many other people would have. If not for you, I wouldn't be where I am right now. So, you have my loyalty as long as you'll have me."

She reached over and hugged him. "I'll make sure to remember that. Friends like you don't grow on trees..." She paused. "...but they are born in pairs. Anyways, the only thing I ask is that you give me time to get your brother married off before I have to begin planning yours..."

That evening, when Maya got home from work, she walked in to the suite and found Zack sitting on the couch with a big smile on his face.

"Well, well...Looks like you're in a good mood."

"Oh, I am...I found out something very interesting today. Seems like you and I owe Moseby a big one..."

_New Haven_

Those next two weeks after Halloween flew by in New Haven as well, and they were busy ones for Cody and Bailey. Like they had said they would do, they finished up the final drafts of their EP&E senior papers after making all the changes that Dr. Ryan suggested. And once they were done to both of their satisfaction, they went ahead and turned them in early so they wouldn't have to worry about them any more. And with the free time they now had on Fridays, they finished up their psychology of food group project, burned a rough draft of it to a disk and went to see Professor Brownell, the class's professor to show it to him. Of course, they waited two weeks to make sure Theo had time to talk to him first. Naturally, Professor Brownell loved what they had done, but he did ask them why only their two names were on it and not the third member of their group. Cody and Bailey gave another brilliant acting performance as they feigned surprise and ignorance at his question. They simply just told him that it had always been just the two of them and that they were the only two that had done any work on it. Although confused, their professor just shrugged and told them their project was already worthy of an A.

So, with those two projects now officially out of the way, Cody and Bailey had their other two classes to focus their attention on until Thanksgiving break. They continued working on their group project for their computers and the law class and had a rough draft of it done as well by Wednesday of the week before their break. They scheduled a meeting with their professor the following afternoon to show it to him, so that left them with only their Biology senior project to worry about. And there wasn't much to worry about there to begin with. All of their experiments were going well and were already giving them some interesting results. Based on those, they devised a few more to try. Of course, they did tell themselves that once they left for Christmas break, they would cut themselves off from doing any further ones. By their calculations, they would have everything concluded around Valentine's Day the next semester, and that would leave them the rest of the spring semester to write up their findings and prepare their presentations.

Of course, Cody and Bailey did have other things they had to do during those weeks. Like they had said, they made a visit to to the campus police station on the Saturday following the Mortician's Ball. And to say the detective they spoke to was interested in all the evidence they had accumulated would be an understatement. Naturally, he did remember Cody and Bailey from the year before and told them that he would be happy when they finally graduated. As he laughed, the good detective told them that it seemed like trouble was following them around. But, he did agree that it would be prudent to hold off on bringing in Theo until the other delivery he spoke of happened. However, the detective told them to stay away from him as much as possible until they did arrest him. And that was just fine with Cody and Bailey. So, they avoided him in the dining hall and always showed up right before it started and left immediately once their psychology of food class was over

However, the Thursday before Thanksgiving break was going to be different. That morning, they got a phone call that it was now d-day as the delivery had been made the night before. So, they just smiled as the realized how perfect the timing of that was. They, for the first time in a few weeks, actually arrived to their class early that morning, and as luck would have it, they almost immediately ran into Theo once they got there. And from the look on his face, something seemed to be bothering him.

"How are you feeling, Bailey? Last time I saw you, you were sicker than a dog..."

She plastered a fake smile on her face. "Oh, I don't think I've ever felt better. Thank you for asking though..." She paused. "But, if I may say, you don't look so good, Rob. You look positively exhausted..."

Theo sighed. "I am. I've been cramming all week for my third organic chemistry test tomorrow. I really could have used your help."

Bailey held her tongue. "Well, Cody and I have been busy too. Its just been one thing after another these past few weeks..."

At that moment, the professor's teaching assistant entered the room and set up a box on the podium for everyone to put their group projects in.

She smiled. "Excuse us..." She turned to Cody. "Come on, Sweetie. Lets go turn in our project while we're thinking about it."

So, they did, and soon after, Professor Brownell entered the lecture hall and everyone began taking their seats. As was their habit, Cody and Bailey took their usual seats in the front row in the center of the room. Soon after, the professor began his lecture for the day, and for the next hour, everyone took notes on what he was saying. But about ten o'clock, he concluded his lecture fifteen minutes early, and his teaching assistant brought over the list of people who had turned in projects and the list of people who hadn't yet.

"Well, ladies and gentlemen, if you've already turned in your project, then I'll see you after the Thanksgiving break. If you haven't, then turn it in now. Class dismissed..." At that mention, the class began dispersing, and Theo grabbed his backpack and was about to head on to his next class. But he noticed Professor Brownell walking towards him.

"Mr. Cavanaugh, I noticed your name on the list of people who hadn't turned in their project yet. Are you going to turn yours in?"

That caught Theo off guard. "Ummm...Mine should be in there, Sir. It was turned in by my partners."

"Well, none of the projects has your name on it. My TA spent the class period making the lists for me, and according to it, you haven't turned in one yet."

Theo spoke in a low voice in case anyone was listening. "Professor, I was in a group with Bailey Pickett and Cody Martin. They must have forgotten to put my name on it."

Professor Brownell laughed. "That's a good one! Miss Pickett and Mr. Martin came to see me at my office personally to discuss their project about a week ago. They told me that they were the only ones in their group and only ones who did the work on what they turned in..."

Theo swallowed. "I was never told about any meeting, Sir. They're probably just trying to play a little joke on me right now. I bet that's it..."

The professor just looked at him. "Possibly. Alright, if you actually worked with them, can you tell me what their topic was?"

He gulped and began sweating profusely. "Ummm...no, sir, I can't. They never actually called me to work on it. They were going to do me a favor since I've been so busy with my organic chemistry class..."

"So, you never did any work on it and expect me to give you the same grade I would give them? I don't think so! And why would they have agreed to add your name to it? I mentioned your name to them in my meeting with them, and they said they had never heard of you..."

Upon hearing that, Theo was getting a really bad feeling in the pit of his stomach. Why had they done that?

Professor Brownell continued. "Sounds to me like you were trying to piggy back off of them and earn a grade you didn't deserve. And for that, I should turn you into the honor board and let them investigate this whole thing. But since its the holidays, I'll feeling a little generous..."

He sighed in relief. "Thank you, Sir. I promise you I will do a solo project and have it to you first thing the Monday after Thanksgiving break."

"I don't think so. If you read the syllabus, for every day its late, your grade on it will be reduced by five percentage points. So, even if you somehow did a perfect project in the next 24 hours, the best you could get is a 95%. By the Monday you mentioned, the best you could do would be a..." He paused to do the math. "... 45% on a perfect project..."

Theo's eyes went wide again. "But Professor Brownell! There is no way I can get one done tonight! I have an organic chemistry exam in the morning that I've been busting my hump for! I bombed my last test in there and need to do well on this one to bring my grade up..."

Professor Brownell shrugged. "I'm sorry. That's not my problem. You should have managed your time more wisely then, Mr. Cavanaugh. I won't bend the rules for you when everyone else has followed them. I'll be expecting that project...at your earliest convenience." And with that, he slung his bag over his shoulder, picked up the box of projects and left the class room.

Theo just stood there watching him leave and hung his head. It certainly looked like he was going to have a long night ahead of him. So, he picked up his backpack, and turned around to leave when he saw Cody and Bailey standing there smirking at him.

"Hope you have fun tonight..."

Cody laughed. "As I recall, the third organic test is a real bear. Now, which one will you be doing tonight? The project or studying for your test? Don't have time to do both, so which one will it be...Theo?"

Theo just looked at them momentarily before it finally dawned on him. "Wait a minute...you know who I am then!"

Bailey laughed. "Of course we do. You really shouldn't have sent those flowers. Cody already thought he knew you from somewhere, and when you did that, it caused him to ask Mr. Chun about you. Well, lets just say we were both surprised by what he said. And Cody was pretty sure you'd try something underhanded, so thanks to a report we got on your activities at Princeton, we've been a few steps ahead of you the whole time..." She stopped laughing and glared at him. "Though, trying to latch on to our project in here seems really desperate...but not as much as what you tried Halloween..."

He just kept looking at them in shock. "Wait a minute! My second organic test! You told me the wrong things to study for on purpose so I would fail!"

She shook her head. "No, I didn't. If you'll remember, I encouraged you to study everything but just happened to mention what was tested heavily on my exam..." She shrugged. "Not my fault that the same things weren't covered..."

"Well, I hope you two are happy! I'll never get into a good medical school now! Thanks to you two, I'm going to bomb at least one class this semester!"

Cody laughed this time. "Getting into a medical school will be the least of your worries for a long, long time. You see, we also know exactly what you had planned on Halloween. Bailey never drank the cup you gave her. She passed it on to a friend of ours, and we took it to the campus police the next day..."

Bailey continued. "And I guess you know what they found, huh? I mean, you put it in there after all..."

He looked back and forth between them before scowling. "Good luck proving I had anything to do with it!"

Bailey smiled. "Oh, we don't need luck. We have video of you spiking the drink plus video of it never leaving our custody after you gave it to me. Plus, we have an audio clip of you admitting to doing it as well as you planning on trying to commit academic fraud in this class."

Cody grinned too. "Don't worry. We aren't going to report you to the honor board either though. Not because of the holidays, but I think Yale will kick you out for your other misdeeds..."

Theo just kept glaring at them and he snapped once he realized he was now in serious trouble. "You two won't get away with this! I'll kill you both!"

And with that, he began running at Cody and Bailey in an attempt to attack them. But both held their ground and Bailey greeted him with a swift kick to his knee. There wasn't a crunching sound, but Theo double over. And not knowing what came over him in the moment, Cody reached back before delivering a right uppercut to Theo's chin. Immediately, Theo went down to the ground, and he was in a complete daze. If they had been in a ring, he would have been down for the count, and Cody would have been awarded a KO. Instead, he took the opportunity to kneel down and whisper in Theo's ear.

"If you ever come near Bailey again, I will kill you. Simple as that. She is my life, and I will do whatever I have to do to protect her. So, you've been forewarned. And don't think I don't know ways of killing you that won't be traced back to me. You understand what I'm saying?"

Theo was still in a stupor as he looked up at Cody. Of course, that's when Cody noticed something and grinned.

"You should consider yourself lucky that you aren't dead right now. But I don't think you'll like what's about to happen to you next..."

Theo had no idea what Cody meant by that, but a few seconds later, he did. Before he knew it, he was being jerked back up to his feet. And, looking to both sides of him, he saw uniformed campus police officers.

"You must not be very bright after all, Mr. Cavanaugh. We just added terroristic threatening and assault to the long list of charges against you..." The officer laughed. "And in case you didn't realize it yet, you are under arrest. You have the right to remain silent, but if you speak, what you say may be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney. If you can't afford one, one will be provided to you." He pulled out a pair of handcuffs and cuffed Theo.

The appearance by the police didn't make any sense to Theo right then, and he had no idea what was happening. But Cody and Bailey just smirked at him. "I don't think you'll like your new living quarters as much as the ones you have in Berkeley. Something tells me the windows will have bars, and the food won't nearly be as good. But don't worry, once the authorities here in New Haven are done with you, I'm pretty sure the ones down at Princeton will probably want a piece of you too. I mean, that was part of your agreement there, wasn't it? If you kept your nose clean, they wouldn't press further charges against you if you just went away. Well, you haven't, so the deal is off..."

The campus police officer spoke up. "Oh, we won't even get first crack at him - the feds will. We saw the delivery made to his dorm room last night, and after getting a warrant, we searched Mr. Cavanaugh's dorm room this morning as soon as we saw him leave to come to class. We didn't find any rohypnol, but we found large quantities of several different illegal narcotics. And I mean large enough that we have reason to believe he was planning on distributing and selling and just not using. The feds will get him for at least possession, distribution and racketeering charges. I don't think you two will have to worry about seeing him ever again. I honestly doubt he'll ever see the light of day again after everyone is done with him..."

Hearing all of that helped clear the fog from Theo's mind, and he was now livid. "Don't you know who I am? Who my parents are? I'll beat this with ease!"

"I guess we'll just have to see about that, won't we?" The officers began marching Theo out. "But for now, your butt is mine!"

As he was lead out, Cody couldn't help himself. "And Theo? Watch out for your cornhole!"

Cody and Bailey grabbed their backpacks too so they could head on to their next class. And as they did, Cody couldn't help but to shake his right hand.

"Okay, that kind of hurt..."

Bailey grinned and lifted his hand up so she could kiss it. "Better now?"

Cody grinned back at her. "Much..."

"Good. Because, Sweetie...trust me on this. While you may have just knocked him out, I know you're a lover and not a fighter."

___To be Continued..._

**AN: Was I the only one who thought they heard a very loud 'Dang it!' when Miami won the NBA title on Thursday night and LeBron James got his first ring? Poor Woody...**___  
_


	15. Lost and Found

_Episode 15_

_"Lost and Found"  
_

_I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did._

_Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them._

_Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves._

_And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so..._

_New Haven_

After watching Theo be lead away by the campus police, Cody and Bailey didn't have time to stand around and pat themselves on he back as hey had to hurry so they could be on time for their Computer's and the Law class at 10:30. But, they did make it just in time and smiled at the thought that it would be their last class for eleven days. Once they walked out of it, they wouldn't step foot into another one until the Tuesday of the week after next. So, with that in mind, they didn't mind sitting there taking notes and even had big smiles on their faces as they did. And even better, just like Professor Brownell had in their first class of the day, their professor ended his lecture at 11:30 and dismissed the class fifteen minutes early. Of course, Cody and Bailey went up to the podium and asked him if they could go ahead and get their appointment with him out of the way then. He agreed, and they headed over to his office. And the rumors were true. Due to the...prurient topic they had chosen, he was completely enthralled with their project. Once they were done with their presentation, he just grinned at them and told them it certainly looked like an A in his opinion. He also told them as long as they turned in their homework each of the final three classes after the break, they wouldn't need to take the final to get an A in the course.

Well, that news was just the cherry on top of their day. That combined with seeing Theo finally busted gave them both a very rewarding feeling. And how did they celebrate their good fortune? By going home and doing their usual Friday chores a day early! Cody and Bailey reasoned that since they didn't have classes the next day on Friday that they would head back to Boston that morning. So, by six thirty that afternoon, their room was spotless and they had their laundry done. As they stood around their bed packing their bag for their week back in Boston, Cody turned to Bailey.

"I know after today that I shouldn't be complaining about anything, but can I put in a request that we look for a place in Boston with a washer and dryer?"

She smiled. "Getting tired of the laundry room all ready?"

He sighed. "Kind of. It would be nice to have our own so we wouldn't have to spend two hours a week sitting down their with our laundry to make sure no one stole our clothes. Instead, we could do a load whenever we needed to and then focus our attention on whatever it is we needed to while they washed."

"Yeah, that would be nice. Do you still want to go looking at places tomorrow afternoon?"

"I think we probably should. It'll be close to noon when we get back, so that will give us five hours to walk the area and see what's available."

Bailey nodded. "Okay. Before we go to bed tonight, we'll look online and see if we can find some phone numbers. And while one of us drives tomorrow, the other can make phone calls and try to make appointments."

Cody agreed, and they went back to packing their bag. Just as they finished doing that, they heard a knock at their door. Answering it, they found Gertie and Tapeworm standing there with curious looks on their faces.

"Well? What happened today? Did Theo get arrested?"

Bailey smiled. "Tell you what. Why don't we head on down to the dining hall and we'll tell you everything while we eat."

So, that's what they did. After going through line and getting their evening dinner, the four of them found a table in the corner where no one would intrude or overhear them. And once they sat down, Cody and Bailey gave Tapeworm and Gertie the blow by blow account of what had happened that morning after their psychology of food class. Once they were finished, both Tapeworm and Gertie's eyes went wide and their mouth fell open in shock.

"He really tried to attack you guys?"

Bailey nodded. "Yeah, but I gave him a kick to the knee to stop him..." She paused. "Though, I didn't hear that crunching sound Maya was telling us about. I need to talk to her when we get back to Boston and try to find out what I did wrong. Of course, maybe that lecture hall didn't have the same acoustics that the aquatic therapy area at BU does..."

By now, Tapeworm was laughing and looking at Cody. "So, what's next for you, Champ? You going to fight Mayweather or Pacquiao next? Or are you going straight to MMA? I guess that since I've been helping train you, that makes me your Mickey or you Apollo..." He paused. "Nevermind. They both ended up dying. I will say though, if I hear you start shouting 'Yo, Bailey!' from now on, I'll have to deck you myself!"

Cody shook his head and laughed too. "I think you can forget about any future pugilistic endeavors from me. I think I learned the hard way why boxers wear gloves..."

"So, what happens next?"

"Tomorrow morning, we're stopping by the campus police station to officially press charges against him. But, due to what the cops said, it looks like the feds are going to get first crack at him. And I know this sounds really bad of me, but I'm hoping Theo is really 'popular' in the federal pen."

Gertie paused. "What about what he said about his parents helping him beat the charges?"

Bailey shrugged. "We'll see, but with this going to the feds first, I'm not sure how much pull they'll have. Federal judges and district attorney's are appointed positions and not elected ones. His folks offering them a huge bribe in way of a campaign contribution won't work. Plus, he violated the deal he made when he left Princeton. I don't think they can get him out of that again..."

"I sure hope so..."

She smiled. "I have faith everything will work out. Besides, its Thursday night. We need to hurry up and eat because there is a new episode of _The Big Bang Theory _on tonight..."

And hurry they did. Once the episode was over, Gertie and Tapeworm headed back to their room to do some homework while Cody and Bailey finished up what they needed to do before heading back to Boston in the morning. The next morning, they were up early and caught the shuttle to the parking garage to get their car. and from there, they doubled back to the campus police station. There, they formally pressed charges against Theo. But it was there that they got some very good news.

The detective they had been working with had the biggest grin on his face. "You two would have enjoyed the show last night. Cavanaugh's parents showed up here, and he began smirking at us telling us he would be back out on the streets in less than a half hour. But instead of bailing him out, they chewed him out and told him that they weren't going to help him this time. Instead, they hoped him having to face the consequences of his actions for once would finally make him grow up. When they left, all of the color drained from his face. I don't think our boy Theo is going to have a very good time for the next fifty or so years..."

With that to buoy their spirits, Cody and Bailey headed back to Boston with the biggest smiles on their faces.

_Boston_

And two hours and a half hours later, Cody and Bailey pulled their car into the parking garage of the Boston Tipton. Grabbing their bags, they headed up to their suite and found it empty. Figuring Zack wasn't back from class yet, they threw their stuff on to their bed and headed across the hall to Carey's suite. And when she saw that it was them standing in her door way, she immediately engulfed them both in a tight embrace.

"I'm so glad you two are finally back! And the fact that I get you two back a day earlier than I expected is even better!" She paused. "You two aren't skipping class are you?"

Bailey laughed. "Not at all. We only have real classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays. And we usually spent Fridays working on our EP&E papers, but we handed in our final drafts of those a few weeks ago."

Cody grinned. "Plus, it just made sense for us to come back today for several reasons. For one, we have tickets to the Yale and Harvard football game tomorrow afternoon over in Cambridge."

Carey nodded before she thought of something. "About that...who are you two rooting for in that game? On one hand, you have your current school, and on the other, you have your future one. Seems to me that that could cause some divided loyalties..."

And at the exact same time, both answered without even thinking. "Yale!"

She was taken aback by the fervor of their answer, but just laughed. "Alright then. I see your loyalties aren't divided after all. Now, you said you had other reasons to come back to Boston today. What are those? Having something else you have to do today or tomorrow or just plan on resting up?"

Bailey smiled. "We wish we could take it easy because I think we've both earned some down time. But we have several appointments to look at potential places to live over in the the neighborhoods around the medical school. Hopefully, we can find some place halfway decent and get this off our list of things to do."

Carey nodded. "Well, I still wish you two would reconsider staying here at the Tipton, but I wish you good luck. Actually, I would offer to go with you and help, but I already told Arwin I'd help him check the new microphones we just got. It took several years, but I think we finally have ones that won't make me sound like a chipmunk when they go bad."

Cody winced. "I remember that now..." He shook his head. "Well, have fun and good luck to you too." He paused as he suddenly thought of something. "Speaking of things work around here nowadays, have the found a new manager to take over for Esteban yet?"

Carey shook her head. "Not yet. Since this is the chain's flagship hotel, I think they are still looking for just the right candidate to take it over. I just hope they find someone who isn't too much of a pain in the butt. I even tried to convince Moseby to come back, but he said no thank you. Something about enjoying working nine to five nowadays and having a wife he wants to spend time with. But, if you ask me, I think he's just getting soft in his old age."

"Well, you can't blame him for that. Its not like we made things all that easy for him...especially Zack."

"Speaking of Zack, you're brother is a little bit upset with you. He claims he was violated when he went to get fitted for his suit for your wedding. Do either of you have any idea what he might be talking about?"

Cody cringed again, but Bailey busted out laughing. "I seriously doubt he was, Carey. Arturo had some fun messing around with Cody when he measured him, and I'm sure he did the same thing to Zack too. At the worst, Arturo probably slapped him on the butt when he was done with him."

"Well, I'm just telling you what he told me. So, be forewarned."

"We will, Mom..." Cody paused. "Actually, while I'm thinking about it, have you heard anything new regarding Maddie and Trevor?"

"Nothing in the past week or so. It seems that Zack and London have been secretly trying to find Trevor behind Maddies's back and let him know what was going on. Unfortunately, about a week ago, they discovered that he had taken an assignment in Afghanistan. London decided right then and there that she was going to pull out the big gun and called in her father's men to find him now. I haven't heard anything new this past week, but I wish them luck..."

Cody and Bailey could only nod somberly. "So do we."

"But, while everyone else knows now, Maddie doesn't yet. And since she's pregnant, none of us want her to just yet. That kind of news could have disastrous consequences. So, we're just trying to keep up appearances around her, so you two should as well while you're back. But I seriously hope he comes back to Boston soon. If not, I'm going to have to start jogging again."

"What do you mean, Carey?"

"Well, when London goes out with Todd, Maddie sometimes comes down here and hangs out with me. With her pregnancy cravings, she isn't holding back any..." She paused. "And well, who am I to make her eat alone?"

Cody just shook his head. "Okay. Well, we're going to get out of here and go to our appointments. Hopefully, we'll get lucky this afternoon and find something."

And with that, they headed off towards the Longwood Medical area of Boston near the Harvard Medical School. Deciding to take the subway instead of driving, they got off at second closest stop to the east side of their target are and figured they would move from east to west. Before they got started though, they decided to check out a restaurant they had heard a lot about in the neighborhood. After all, they would hopefully be living around there for the next four years, so why not go ahead and familiarize themselves with the local establishments.

By five o'clock that afternoon, they had been on tours of several places, but things weren't looking that good for them. With the money Harvard was giving them, their options turned out to be pretty limited. In fact, they quickly realized they were down to really only two places they could afford and still be withing walking distance of their future school. One was a two bedroom apartment in an old and run down building, and the other was a one bedroom apartment in a more modern one.

"Well, Bails...what do you think?"

She sighed. "I think we've gotten spoiled by our current dorm room. None of the places that will fit into our budget are anywhere as nice as it is..."

He nodded. "I know. So much for us being in a recession, huh? And I guess with us always living in the hotel, I had no idea how much apartments in Boston went for..." He sighed. "It would be nice if we could find a nice place that was rent controlled..."

"Tell me about it. And unfortunately, Harvard's married student housing is across the river and not really in walking distance..." Bailey shook her head. "Well, we know what our options are, Sweetie. Which one do you think we should go with?"

Cody paused. "Well, the two bedroom one would give us room to have a home office like we have now. But, with how old that place is, I would want Gertie to check out the soundness of the building so we'd know if it even will still be standing in four years..."

Bailey nodded. "I had the same thoughts. And while the other place was much more modern, we would be so cramped there and constantly on top of each other..."

He grinned. "You make that sound like a bad thing..."

She shook her head and laughed. "You know what I mean..."

"I do. Well, which one do you like best, Boo Boo? Whichever one you prefer, we'll go with it..."

Bailey paused to think before shaking her head again. "Honestly, Cody...I have no clue. I think we need to think about this some more and not make too rash of a decision." She sighed again. "I just wish we had more options to choose from..."

"Me too, Bails. Tell you what though. Lets head back to the hotel, and we'll call an agency to see if they can find any more places for us. Besides, its starting to get kind of chilly out here."

She agreed with his idea, and they began making their way towards the area's other subway stop when they saw something that surprised them. Where months before had stood a dilapidated block or row houses, they now saw a cleared lot with numerous wood frames having already been built.

"I don't remember this being here before..."

"Me either. I wonder what it is?"

They walked over to explore it, and that's when they saw the sign staked on the other side of it.

_"__Coming Summer of 2015 – Tipton Town! You're best selection of luxury townhouses in the Longwood Medical Area. Call 857-555-4653 to inquire about them today!"_

Cody and Bailey just looked at each other in surprise. "London...She actually used our idea!"

_Back at the Tipton_

That same afternoon, Zack got back to the suite about two o'clock after his usual lunch with Maya. And once he walked in, he could tell something was different. For one, the mail had already been gathered and sorted into everyone's cubby holes. Second, the door to Cody and Bailey's room was open, and it never was when they weren't there. Walking over and taking a look inside, he saw two of their bags sitting in the middle of their bed, and that was all the proof Zack needed that they were indeed home. Briefly, he wondered why they were back so soon, but then he remembered they didn't have classes on Fridays. Normally, Zack would have just shaken his head about that, but he was in too good of mood. He only had a short two day week of the next week and then only full weeks of classes left once the break was over.

Of course, Zack found himself with the conundrum. Should he head over to the couch and watch television for a few hours or do some work on a project he needed to get done that wasn't due until the Friday after the break. When doing his homework won out, he did sigh and shake his head. So, several hours later, he was still sitting at the kitchen table working away when he heard a knock at the door. Getting up to answer it, he saw it was London, and she rushed in past him.

"Zack, we have a major problem!"

That caught his attention. "We do? What? What's wrong?"

London was pretty much freaking out. "Its been almost a week, and I haven't head back from Daddy's guy yet! I've heard zilch, zero, nada, nothing..."

"Okay, slow and calm down. What do you mean you haven't heard back from him yet?"

She sighed. "Well, you know he thought he had a lead on Trevor, right?"

Zack nodded. "Yeah..."

"Well, he hasn't contacted me again to let me know if his lead panned out yet or not. I have no idea if that was Trevor or not. Where we go from here kind of depends on that crucial piece of information!"

"Oh...gotcha. Well, what do we do now?"

London sunk onto the couch. "I have absolutely no idea. If you have any ideas, I'm all ears..."

Zack sat down next to her. "Well, I guess we just have to have a little faith then. We have to hope that it was Trevor and that he did find him. I mean...you did say he was around Navy Seals, right?"

"Yeah..."

"Well, you said yourself they don't like to be publicized. Plus, being they are in Afghanistan, I bet they don't want the locals to know they are there and what they may be up to. Add that to the fact that I seriously doubt there are many cell phone towers. Trust me, I remember how hard it was to get a signal out in the Atlantic Ocean, and the ship actually had a tower. So, London, try not to freak out about this too much. There are a whole lot of reasons why haven't heard anything yet..."

"I sure hope so because I think Maddie is getting even worse..."

Zack frowned. "She is? In what way? Is she acting more depressed lately?"

London shook her head. "Not really, but the way she plows through a bag of cheese puffs is disgusting. I feel like I'm back on the boat watching Woody terrorize the Mexican buffet again..."

He laughed. "Yeah, that was pretty always impressive to watch."

She just gave him a look. "If you say so, but at least Woody never had wild mood swings where he was smiling one minute and then crying his head off the next!"

"True, but then again, Maddie isn't going around saying 'Dang it!' and 'Hurtful!'. Besides, Maddie is pregnant. From what I've seen on TV, that sounds completely normal. London, you just have to be patient with her."

London just gave him another look. "Zack? How long have you known me? Have you ever known the word patient ever being used to describe me?"

Zack paused. "Well, no, I can't say I have. But to be fair, a lot of words people used to describe you with are no longer true. Maybe this time it can work in reverse?"

She sighed. "Maybe. I just wish I had something else to get my mind off of all of this for a little while..."

There is an old expression that says 'ask and ye shall receive'. Well, London did ask to get something else to focus on, and her wish was granted.. The door to the suite swung open and in walked Cody and Bailey. And when they saw London was there in the suite, both of them had looks on their faces that neither London or Zack could quite decipher.

"Hey guys...welcome back to Boston."

But both of them seemed to have blocked out Zack even being there. Instead, Bailey just kept looking at London. "London, you'll never guess where we just got back from...?"

She still didn't like the looks on their faces, but she shrugged. "Where?"

Cody spoke up. "The Longwood Medical area near the Harvard Medical School. And can you guess what we discovered there?"

London laughed as she now knew what was going on. "Oh, that? Yeah, I kind of borrowed your idea. You said what you would do if you had that kind of money, and well, I do have that kind of money. And Daddy thought it was a good idea too. Did you know that within a week of putting up that sign, the poor receptionist at Tipton Properties had already fielded close to a thousand phone calls inquiring about it? And within a month, we had already sold over 80% of the townhouses we're building. Daddy and I couldn't believe we didn't think of this before - build nice houses near hospitals, and doctors will flock to you! We've already sold out of the ones in Tipton Town and have a waiting list in case any fall through. We're going to make a killing on this!"

Bailey sighed and shook her head. "How nice for you..."

She grinned. "Oh, it gets even better! We're already looking into buying more property around there to build more more new housing. In fact, we're going to close on the Pemberton building next week. Once all the leases in there expire, we're tearing it down..."

Cody and Bailey looked at each other and groaned. The Pemberton building was the location of the one bedroom apartment they had found that was not only affordable but they didn't worry about the stability of the building's structure either. "I guess that just made our decision for us then, Bails..."

Zack spoke up. "What decision?"

Cody sighed. "We had found two apartments around the medical school we could actually afford. But, one happens to be located in that building London and her father are about to buy and bulldoze. So, it looks like our options are down to one..." He turned to Bailey. "Sorry, Sweetie..."

"Its okay. We'll just do what you suggested and try to find a firm to search for us. There has to be something else around there we can afford..."

London just began laughing. "Why would you do that? I know of the perfect place for you guys!"

They turned and looked at her. "You do?"

"Of course. After all, you guys did give us a multimillion dollar idea, and usually, that comes with a commission of some kind. Daddy and I have already discussed this. Now, he wanted to send you a basket of mini muffins to show our thanks, but I convinced him you two deserve a real finders fee here."

Bailey frowned. "Huh?"

London just continued though. "I think it was when I reminded him that you two got full scholarships to Harvard Medical School and he would no longer have to pay your tuition any more..."

"London! Focus!"

She smiled. "I was getting there. Actually, I was going to tell you two all about this this weekend, but it seems like you two had to jump the gun, didn't you? For giving us such a good idea, your reward will be on of the townhouses in Tipton Town. Of course, Daddy was being stubborn, but we did finally come to the agreement of giving you two one of the smaller ones..."

Cody and Bailey just looked at her again in shock before shaking their heads to clear their minds. "Wait a minute! Are you saying what we think you're saying?"

"Yes, I am. You two can stop looking for a place to live next year because you've already got one. And I really think you'll like living around there. About a block away, you'll have a grocery store, a pharmacy, a 7-11, a TGI Fridays, a Dunkin' Donuts, and a subway station. And just behind all of that is a park. And, I know this is the most important thing to you two, your new place will only be a five to ten minute walk to the heart of Harvard's Medical School..." London paused and began laughed. "Heart of the medical school! I made a funny! Yay Me!"

But Cody and Bailey were oblivious to that. Both of the pulled the other into a hug and began jumping around the suite in joy. Of course, Zack sat there on the couch and rolled his eyes.

"Seriously, London? You're giving them a place to live because they happened to come up with a good idea?"

She looked at him. "Zack...where are we right now?"

"In my suite..."

"The same suite I gave to you because you came up with the good idea of cleaning it up and remodeling it yourself?"

That shut him up. "Oh yeah..."

But by then, Cody and Bailey had stopped doing their dance of joy, and turned their attention back to London. "Is there anyway we can see what our place will actually look like?"

London nodded. "Of course. If I can borrow someone's laptop, I can connect to the Tipton server and access the floor plans for it."

Quickly, Bailey ran to get hers and logged into it before handing it over to London. A few moments later, London turned around the laptop so they could see the screen.

"Alright, here it is."

And when Cody and Bailey saw the plans for their future home, their eyes went wide again in surprise. "This is one of the small ones?"

"Of course. It's only a two bedroom townhouse, and it has less than two thousand square feet. The larger ones are much, much bigger."

Bailey pointed at the screen. "Look Cody! We'll have a garage! And the second bedroom is on the first floor with it. That would be a perfect home office!"

London laughed. "I don't think you'll need to use it for one..."

"Why not?"

"Here, look at the third floor. If you'll notice, the entire floor is the the master suite."

And they did. Their bedroom was huge, and the master bath was even nicer. It made their current one look tiny in comparison. And then they saw it - a study on the other side of the bathroom. Looked like London was right in that the other bedroom would stay a bedroom after all.

London continued. "And you'll notice there are two walk in closets, a his and a hers. I did have some changes made to yours specifically though. The hers closet is almost twice as big as the his one is. I felt like I owed that to Bailey, and that for once, she deserved a huge closet all to herself..."

That brought a smile to Bailey's face. "Thank you, London!"

Cody laughed. "Hey, fine with me. That's the least of my concerns right now..." He pointed to the plans for the second floor. "I mean, look at the size of that kitchen! I'm already drooling thinking of what I can do in there! And look at the size of that pantry!"

Both continued to look at the second floor plans when they both noticed something at the same time that made them smile. "A fireplace!"

London smiled. "Yes, all of them have them. And all of them will be electric heat instead of gas."

Cody noticed something else down on the first floor next to the garage. "Wait a minute! Is that a laundry room? Does that mean we'll have our own washer and dryer?"

"Uh huh. In fact, all of the townhouses will come fully furnished. Daddy says we can charge more that way." She paused. "Actually, that reminds me of something. On Monday, I'm supposed to be meeting with a decorator where we'll be discussing furniture, appliances and everything like that. You guys are welcome to join me and add your own input for your place if you want..."

Bailey looked up and smiled. "Oh yeah! We'll be there!"

London smiled back. "Good. Of course, you haven't said anything about my favorite part of these places - the fourth floor. Half of it will be a large storage room, and the other half is a private roof top deck. And speaking of privacy, you'll have plenty of that. All of the buildings will be in a rectangular shape with a courtyard in the middle. We're thinking of adding a community center, fitness area and pool there as well. Plus, that will allow us to up the association fees. I mean, almost everyone else but you two will be doctors. I'm sure they can afford it. But, all of the garages will face the interior, and there will be a security gate to make sure no non residents can get inside of there."

Bailey turned to Cody. "I was wrong! Somehow, our place next year will be even nicer that what we have now!" She paused and her eyes went wide. "And we'll have plenty of room to bring Porkers up to live with us!"

Cody smiled at her. "Fine with me. And what would you think about putting our hot tub up on the roof top deck?"

Zack finally spoke up again. "Wait a minute! When did you two get a hot tub?"

Cody just grinned at him. "Why the one we took from the ship of course..."

"But that's my hot tub!"

"And you're driving my car that I gave to you. I think this is a more than fair trade..."

_Harvard Stadium_

The next afternoon, Cody and Bailey headed across town to annual skirmish between Yale and Harvard on the gridiron, The Game. They even got there early enough to enjoy some of the tailgating festivities though they did pass on the numerous free drinks they were offered. The game itself was actually pretty competitive with Yale's kicker hitting a thirty-four yard field goal as time expired to give the visiting Bulldogs a one point victory. And to add insult to injury, Harvard's undefeated season was snapped by the hands of their most hated rivals. Of course, the Yale alumni weren't the only ones celebrating as the MIT fans joined them in celebrating as well. And as they exited the stadium, Cody and Bailey could only laugh about the whole thing. Well, they did until Cody head a familiar voice.

"Interest choice of apparel you're wearing, Mr. Martin..."

Cody turned around and was surprised at who was standing there before him. "Dr. Hyden..."

"Good to see you again, young man...even if you are wearing a blue sweatshirt with a giant 'Y' on it. But then again, I guess you are still a student there..."

Cody just laughed. "Well, I do still have to graduate from there. If some of my current professors saw me here in a crimson sweatshirt with a large 'H', they could make my life a living hell..."

Dr. Hyden laughed too. "Good point..." He turned to Bailey. "And I guess you are Miss Pickett. I've heard nothing but good things about you as well. We at the medical school are really happy you both have decided to join us next fall..."

She nodded. "Thank you, Dr. Hyden..."

He laughed again. "And I must thank you two for that. Several of my colleagues said if we had lost out on you two because of my interview technique that I would be one of the cadavers in gross anatomy next year..."

Cody smiled. "Well, I admit, I was a little bit...peeved at first, but after I got some good advice from Bailey's father, I realized I shouldn't let that get in my way. So, I decided to be the best medical student Harvard has ever seen. We both have."

"Good. And I believe you two are quite capable of doing just that. I look forward to having you both in class next fall." He smiled. "Though, from what I hear, both of your last names will be Martin by them. Congratulations on upcoming nuptials."

Bailey smiled. "Thank you."

"Well, I should let you two get going then. You two have a victory to celebrate, and I might get in trouble with some of the locals for congregating with two obvious Yalies..." Dr. Hyden laughed again. "I most certainly can't have that. I'll see you two next fall..."

He kept walking, and Bailey turned to Cody and teased him. "He doesn't seem so bad...at least not the monster you made him out to be..."

_The Tipton_

Even though they were officially on Thanksgiving break, Cody and Bailey did do some homework on Sunday afternoon. They hadn't planned on it, but when they saw Zack and Maya doing some themselves, they went ahead and did their Computers and the Law homework for the rest of the semester. They figured that would leave them one less thing to do when they got back to school. Monday brought with it Zack and Maya returning back to class for their brief two day school week. And while they did that, Cody and Bailey joined London at her meeting with the decorator for the townhouses. And the poor lady had no idea what she was getting into that morning. Cody and Bailey both had definite ideas about what they wanted, but when it came to their future kitchen, he was almost relentless with his exact specifications. To the decorator's relief, the meeting came to a humane ending, but she was so impressed with Cody's ideas about what materials to use that she offered him a job in her office. He just smiled and said he was going to give medical school a shot first. But if that didn't work out for some reason, he would keep her card on file.

Tuesday brought with it Cody and Bailey's annual trip to the suburbs to do their shopping for the Thanksgiving meal. The had even asked Maddies if there was anything in particular she was craving for the meal, and that ended up being a big mistake. Their page and half shopping list quickly morphed into one three pages long. Of course, they thought ahead and bought her some junk food to keep her from going after the ingredients they would need. And they decided to store everything in Carey's suite to avoid any late night raids by either Maddie or Zack.

On Wednesday, Zack and Maya were officially on their breaks too, but they still had to work that day. And while everyone was at their jobs, Cody and Bailey were hard at work preparing everything for the next day. Well, not everyone was at work. Maddie had an early doctor's appointment that morning, and London told her to go ahead and take the rest of the day off. So, she was up in the penthouse with them resting on the couch and watching Cody and Bailey slicing and dicing.

"I'm glad I finally got the chance to hang out with you two again. I've really missed you guys."

Bailey smiled at her. "Well, its good to see you again too, Maddie..." She laughed. "It'll be nice having someone else around to take the brunt of any wisecracks London makes..."

Maddie laughed. "Gee, thanks, Bailey...All I know is that I've kept hearing about the amazing job you two do with the Thanksgiving meal each year. I'm really looking forward to seeing and tasting for myself just how good you two are."

Cody looked up and smiled at her. "No pressure then, huh?"

She laughed. "Nah, you always were a good cook, Cody. I'm sure you still are, and if you taught Bailey, I'm sure she's wonderful as well..." She paused. "But Bailey, when it comes time for you to be in my position, I want you to remember how lucky you are..."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that not only will you have Cody around to rub your swollen feet for you, he's also a good cook who can cook you anything that you'll be craving..."

Bailey laughed and elbowed Cody. "She does make a good point, Sweetie..."

He sighed. "And yet, I'll still get yelled at when she is in labor..."

Maddie laughed too. "I think you'll be alright. So, tell me...how is life in the Ivy League? I want to know all about what Yale is really like."

Bailey smiled again. "Oh, its never boring, that's for sure. But we really like it. Its been the challenge we've both been craving."

"I would certainly hope so. I mean, after four years of it, you've signed up for four more." She paused. "I do have to ask though...isn't it weird to go from Yale to Harvard? You know, with the way they hate each other..."

"You know, we get asked that question a lot, but we don't see anything weird about it at all. We just see it as getting the best education as possible. And while we've loved living in New Haven for four years, it will be nice to be back in Boston again full time."

"It'll be nice to have you both back full time." Maddie looked down at her stomach. "Not only will I have two more babysitters, but Bailey, I have your first patient right here when you finally become a pediatrician."

Bailey grinned. "Thanks for the vote of confidence."

Cody looked up though. "You sure you want us to babysit? Do you not remember that one time Zack and I helped you our around here?"

Maddie laughed. "I do. I remember you ended up tied up with duct tape. And London told me about the time she and you, Bailey, watched the kids on the ship..."

"Yeah, I didn't do much better than Cody did..."

"Well, between the two of you, I think you can handle it. Besides, it would be like the circle of life. I mean, I did used to babysit Cody when he was younger..." She paused and shook her head. "No offense, but I'm still getting used to the fact that you two will be getting married in about eight months. Every time I think about it, all I see is the day that these two short blonde headed twins moved into the hotel..." She paused again and sighed. "...almost ten years ago. And that really makes me feel old."

"Maddie, you're not old. You're 24. You're only three years older than we are..." Cody looked up and grinned again. "And in case you haven't noticed, I'm not so short any more..."

"Oh, that fact hasn't escape my attention. I said the same thing to Zack. Its strange that you two are taller than I am now." She laughed again. "Though, I do hear that Zack hates the fact that you actually broke six foot while he didn't..."

Bailey laughed too. "Oh, you should have seen his face when the doctor told him he had. I seriously thought he was going to start doing cartwheels right there in the middle of the hospital waiting room..."

"Well, I'm glad everything worked out well on your other hospital stay too, Cody. And Bailey, kudos for saving his life."

"I had to. I love him way too much to let him get taken away from me without a fight. But, I have told him to never ever scare me like that again. Thankfully, he doesn't have another appendix that can get inflamed."

"I hear you. Well, I want you two to know that I really look forward to going to your wedding in July. It'll be the first time that London, Zack, Cody and I will all have been on a beach together since that trip we all took to Los Angeles years ago."

"Yeah, I guess it will, won't it?" Cody paused. "That reminds me..." He turned to Bailey. "I wonder if there is anyway to keep all seagulls away from our wedding. I would hate it if the one who enjoyed torturing me decided to show up then and there..."

"I think we'll be fine, Cody. I mean, we lived on the boat for three years, and you only encountered it the one time..."

Maddie just laid her head back and sighed. "Speaking of the boat, the one time I visited you all there, I almost ended up married myself. I remember thinking then that my life couldn't get any more messed up. Guess I was wrong..."

Bailey smiled at her. "Well, if it makes you feel better, your then pint sized prince may actually be able to shave now..." She elbowed Cody again. "That would put him one up on Cody..."

Cody rolled his eyes, but Maddie was still melancholy. "Yeah, great..." She shook her head. "You know, I really envy the two of you. You both have your futures planned out to a tee. Both professionally and personally, you have it all. You guys make it seem so easy while my life is in shambles..."

Bailey shook her head. "That couldn't be any further from the truth, Maddie. I know you've heard all about our periods of mutual stupidity. Cody and I aren't immune from doing dumb things that we later regret. We we're just fortunate that we were able to get our heads out of our butts and overcome all of that."

Cody nodded. "Bailey is right. To paraphrase _The Shawshank Redemption_, we had to crawl through our own river of crap before we came out clean on the other side. And once we did that, we made a vow to each other never to let stupid stuff come between us ever again."

Maddie sighed again. "Yeah, but even then, it was obvious to everyone but you two how much you still loved and wanted to be with each other. I saw it myself in the e-mails you both sent me. I wanted to smack your skulls together and knock some sense into you both. I'm just glad you two finally figured it out on your own."

"So are we, but we are grateful for everything that taught us. We realized that all relationships require constant maintenance and upkeep. We learned we can't take each other for granted and to to appreciate every day that we have each other. And there isn't a day that goes by that I'm not grateful that Cody and I found our ways back to each other."

"Same here. Not only is she my partner and my fiancee, but Bailey is my best friend. I don't know what I'd ever do without her."

She smiled at him. "You'll never have to find out."

Maddie just shook her head at seeing them being so loving with each other. "I'm happy for you both. Really, I am, but sometimes, I just think maybe love isn't enough..." She rubbed her bulging belly. "I mean, look at me. My date for your wedding will be this little bundle of joy right here..."

Bailey shook her head too. "You don't know that for sure. I mean, who knows? Maybe Trevor will be back from Afghanistan soon and you two will be able to work everything out like we did?"

Maddie just laid there for a moment before it fully sunk what Bailey had just said. And as soon as it did, her eyes went wide, and she whipped her head around to look at Bailey. "Afghanistan? What are you talking about, Bailey?"

Instantly, Bailey realized her slip of the tongue and tried to cover it up. "Ummm...I...I meant to say England. Cody and I were watching a show about Afghanistan last night on TV, and it must have been fresh on my brain. Sorry about that..."

Maddie wasn't buying it. "Uh uh. I know you, Bailey. You would never get those two mixed up like that. Now, what did you mean about him coming back from Afghanistan?"

Cody sighed. "Nobody wanted to worry you, Maddie, but it seems that Trevor took an assignment in Afghanistan. Don't be upset with them, but London and Zack have been trying to find him and make sure he's safe."

Maddie just sat there stunned for a second. But that didn't last long as tears began forming in her eyes. "Oh my God! What have I done? He could be killed! My baby could lose its father before its even born!"

Immediately, Bailey ran over to comfort her. "Now, don't say that. We all have to hope that he'll come home safe and sound. I truly believe he will, so you should too."

"But what if he doesn't?"

"You can't think like that, Maddie."

She buried her face in her hands. "But I can't help it! If anything happens to him, it would all be my fault!"

Bailey just rubbed her shoulders trying to comfort here while Cody just stood there not sure what to do. Fortunately, the awkward moment by a knock at the door to the penthouse. Bailey looked up and mouthed to Cody. "Get rid of whoever it is!"

He nodded and went over to open the door. And when he saw who it was standing there, he couldn't help but to smile. "Maddie, you have a visitor here to see you..."

Her face was still buried in her hands. "Tell whoever it is that I'll talk to them later..."

"Does that include me?"

Immediately, Maddie's head shot up as she recognized that voice. Standing there in the doorway was a young man on crutches and his left knee in a large brace.

Maddie shrieked. "Trevor!"

___To be Continued..._

**AN: Yes, this is an unusual time for me to be posting, but I'm sitting in the middle of a Continuing Legal Education class right now bored out of my mind. So...**


	16. Third Time a Charm?

_Episode 16_

_"Third Time a Charm?"_

_I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did._

_Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them._

_Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves._

_And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so..._

_London's Penthouse_

Maddie just sat there on the couch stunned as she was having trouble believing that the man she loved who she had just recently found out had volunteered to go to a war zone was now standing in the doorway of London's Penthouse. Talk about a whirlwind of emotions, but he was really there. Unfortunately, another thought crossed her mind. Ever since London had mentioned it, Maddie had wondered how the next she and Trevor would go like, and it appeared that she was about to find out. But seeing him there in person, that didn't matter much to her as all she wanted to do was run over and throw her arms around him. She just wanted to hold him and cry. And she wanted to cry and apologize to him for what she had done. Seeing him again, she knew she had been wrong to push him away. Maddie knew it was all her fault that he ended up in Afghanistan. And she knew she was to blame for him being on crutches right then. And when it finally sunk into her that he had somehow hurt himself and was on crutches, a new batch of pregnancy hormones began to kick in. Maddie just about lost as the tears began flowing again, and Bailey immediately tried to comfort her. But that wasn't what she wanted. She wanted her Trevor and wanted to go to him and hope he would comfort her back.

But she couldn't. As happy as she was to see him again and know that he was alive and well, the shock of him being there had caused her to temporarily lose feeling in her legs. But she wasn't going to let that stop her, so she scooted herself to the edge of the couch and tried to rise up. Fortunately, Bailey was there to help her. And after a few steps, she regained the feeling back in her legs. As fast as she could, she ran over and threw her arms around Trevor's neck and buried her face into his chest as she began to cry even harder. For his part, Trevor tried to rub her back to calm her down. But, as he was on crutches, that wasn't the easiest task in the world for him to do. After what seemed like forever, Maddie finally stopped crying, pulled back from him and looked up at him with tear stained cheeks.

"You're really here..." She swallowed. "I didn't know. I just found out a few minutes ago that you had been in Afghanistan. I...I..." She paused as she felt even more tears coming.

He shushed her. "Yeah, I was. I was there for a story, and I figured going there would force me not to think about you. I knew if I didn't focus on what was going on around me, I knew bad things could happen..." He nodded down at his crutches. "...like this. But yesterday, this guy I had never seen before showed up at the camp looking for me. And he told me some news that rocked my world..."

"I can imagine..."

Trevor looked down and saw the bulge of Maddie's belly. "But hearing it and seeing it with my own two eyes are completely different things..." He paused. "So, its really true...you really are pregnant..."

Maddie could only nod. "Yeah, I am..." She paused before thinking about the irony of what she was about to say. "Surprise?"

"Yeah, you could definitely say that..." He shook his head. "Maddie, how did this happen? I mean...I always thought we were pretty careful in our attempts to make sure something like this didn't happen!"

"I know, I thought we were too. But, the doctor London took me too has a theory."

"I'm listening..."

"You remember back in June when I wasn't feeling too well, and the doctor put me on some meds?"

He nodded. "Uh huh..."

"Well...she thinks those meds counteracted my birth control and made it ineffective..."

"Lovely...Information that would have been useful to have known then!"

Unbeknownst to them, Bailey had returned over to stand next to Cody. And when they both heard that, both immediately turned to each other with the same expression on their faces and thought crossing their minds. They really wanted to know what the name of those meds were so they could make sure they didn't have their own surprise. But, both knew that was neither the time or the place to bring up that topic.

Maddie sighed. "I know...but, what's done is done."

Trevor had to nod again. "I guess so. I'm also guessing you and I need to talk..."

"Yeah, you're right. We definitely need to talk. " But when she turned around to lead him over to the couch, she suddenly remembered she hadn't been alone in the penthouse. She saw Cody and Bailey just standing behind the counter looking back at her with smiles on both of their faces. "Oh yeah, I almost forgot. Trevor, you remember me telling you about Cody Martin and his finacee, Bailey Pickett, right? Well, that's them. They're actually up here preparing all of the food for Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow." She paused. "Let me think..."

Cody reached into his pocket and tossed her his keys. "If you want, feel free to use our suite. You should have plenty of privacy as we'll be here and Zack and Maya are still at work. We'll even call them and let them know what's going on so they won't interrupt you two. Take your time."

Maddie caught them and smiled back at Cody. "Thanks..." She turned back to Trevor. "Come on, follow me."

They headed out in to the hallway and towards the elevators. And once they were gone, Bailey turned to Cody. "Looks like we didn't leave all the drama in New Haven like we thought we did..."

_The Suite on the 23rd Floor_

Several minutes later, Maddie and Trevor arrived at the twins' suite, and she opened the door for them. Letting him hobble in before she did, she closed the door behind them and locked it. Both headed for the couch before sitting down next to each other. For a few minutes, they both just looked the other with neither having any idea where to start. Trevor had so many questions that he didn't know what to ask first, and Maddie, realizing how badly she had screwed up, wanted him to be the first to speak. Finally, he just sighed.

"So..."

"Yeah..." She paused. "Trevor, I just want to say that...that...well, I know now I was wrong. I should have told you well before now that we were having a baby...that you were going to be a father..."

Trevor shook his head and sighed. "Don't go there right now..." He slumped back into the couch and stared up at the ceiling for a few more minutes. "Okay, we know that I found out yesterday. How long have you know that you were pregnant?"

Maddie winced. "Well, you remember the day you told me about your internship in London?"

He nodded before he realized what she was trying to say. "Since then?"

"Yeah..."

He tried to keep his cool as best as he could. "Alright...if you found out then, why didn't you tell me that night?"

Tears begin welling up in Maddie's eyes again. "You have to believe me...I was fully planning on telling you. For that entire week before, I hadn't been feeling well. One of the ladies I worked with had a kid with a stomach virus, and I thought I had just picked that up. So, I went to the doctor to see if he could give me something to combat it. You remember me throwing up a few times that week, right?"

He nodded. "Yeah, I remember."

"Well, that afternoon, the doctor dropped the bomb on me that I didn't have a stomach virus. Instead, he told me I was pregnant. Well, I was just as shocked to hear that as I assume you were when you were told. And I was scared to death too. Instead of going back to work, I went back to our apartment. But before I could open the door, I noticed their were several mothers and children in the park across the street from us. So, I went over there and just sat and watched them for a couple of hours. And after a little while, my fears began to subside. I started to think that maybe this wouldn't be so bad after all. So, I headed back up to our apartment and waited for you to get home so I could tell you..."

Trevor cut her off. "So, what happened between then and me having to find out the way I did?"

Maddie sighed. "Like I said, I was going to. I even told you that I had a surprise for you that night. But if you'll remember, you said you had one too. And, you insisted you go first..."

"Well, I was excited about my opportunity in London! I thought you would be too! How was I to know that you had a surprise that was even bigger?" He stopped himself to try to reel in his emotions. "Okay, sorry for getting a little heated there. But that still doesn't explain why you didn't tell me! Damn it, Maddie, I had a right to know to know I was going to be a father!"

Maddie just took his anger in stride and nodded. "You're right. You did have the right to know. I don't know if I can explain what was going on in my mind when you told me your news. Just when I thought I had wrapped my mind around us having a baby, you dropped your bomb on me. All of a sudden, things didn't seem to make sense to me any more. I already had one major thing to tell you that was going to flip our lives upside down, and then you threw another one on top of that. For some reason, I...I don't know...I just began freaking out about everything..."

"Why? Why were you freaking out?"

"I think it was because it was just too much change for my system to handle all at once. Trevor, I could see how excited you were about your internship. I had totally forgotten all about it until I suddenly remembered you talking about applying for it and how you didn't think you had a chance of getting it. I remembered telling you that you had to chase your dreams and to go for it no matter what the odds were. And then, the you found out you got it happened to get it the same day I found out I was pregnant. I mean, the odds of those two things happening on the same day?" She shook her head. "But my mind was telling me that this was your dream, and I had told you to chase your dreams. You had just gotten the opportunity of a lifetime, and my mind was telling me that I would be giving you an unfair choice by making you choose between your dream and us..."

Trevor sighed. "Maddie, there wouldn't have been a decision to make! As happy as I was about the job, it would have paled in comparison to finding out I was going to be a father! I know it wasn't exactly in our plans at that time, but it was definitely in my long term plans for us..."

"Really?"

"Really. But now, everything is a complete mess. You broke up with me and I spent weeks and months trying to figure out why. And I never could come up with a reasonable explanation to that one. And you never took any of my calls either, so I was lost. I tried to move on, but it was so hard. And then when I think I'm starting to get there, this guy I've never seen before in my life shows up at our base camp in Afghanistan and tells me that you are pregnant with my child..."

The tears returned to Maddie's eyes once again. "And you can't imagine the shame I feel for causing you to go off to Afghanistan where you ended up getting hurt! I will never forgive myself for that for as long as I live!" She wiped her eyes. "How bad was it? Was it an attack on your camp? An humvee accident? Did some kind of bomb detonate and you dove for cover or worse, got hit with shrapnel?"

Trevor looked at her funny. "Huh? What are you..." He paused when he realized what she was talking about, and he actually began to laugh. "Oh...are you talking about my knee? No, nothing like that happened. I was playing some pickup basketball with some of the Seals. I went up trying to dunk the basketball and missed. When I came down, I landed on my knee awkwardly. Turns out, I tore my ACL..."

Maddie just stared at him in surprise. "Huh? Basketball? But you were in a war zone!"

Trevor shrugged. "Actually, I was never in any danger. My assignment was a full access stint with Seal unit to see what there daily lives were actually like. The only gunshots I ever heard were when they were on their practice range. And we were in the far northeastern part of the country near the boarder with China. I wasn't anywhere near all the hills and caves where Al-Qaeda are..." He paused. "...I mean where they potentially are holed up..."

She was still confused. "But...but..."

He cut her off. "But that isn't relevant at all to what's really important. The important thing is that you and I are having a child together..."

Maddie just nodded. "I know. I know that a whole lot has been thrown at you in such a short time frame. But I want you to remember that our child is completely innocent here. All I ask is no matter what you feel about me anymore that you won't let if affect your relationship with our child..."

_Back up in London's Suite_

Even though Maddie and Trevor had been gone for almost a half hour, Cody and Bailey were still a little shell shocked by what has just happened. Fortunately for them, they still had the Thanksgiving dinner to prepare to keep themselves busy. So, for those thirty minutes, they continued working side by side slicing, dicing and chopping. But even though they were busy, both couldn't help but to wonder what was going on several floors below. And like Cody had said, he had sent a text message to Zack and Maya letting them know what was going on so they wouldn't accidentally walk in on Maddie and Trevor. Before too long though, Cody and Bailey both finished up the last dishes they were working on and didn't have the distraction anymore. So, both just turned to look at each other. However, Cody had to smile when he remembered the coincidences

"You know, Bails...this is twice now that something like this has happened to us..."

She gave him a funny look. "What do you mean, Sweetie? What has happened to us twice now?"

"Think back two and a half years ago. Then like now, we were minding our business when there was a knock at the door. Then, it was Maya showing up out of nowhere to see Zack while he had no clue that she was going to be there. Now, it was Trevor showing up out of nowhere to see Maddie when she had no clue that he was going to be there. And both times, we were left in an incredibly awkward situation where we had no idea what we were supposed to do. Then, we went and cleaned up our new suite. Now, we finished making Thanksgiving dinner..."

Bailey smiled at him. "Yeah, I guess you're right. At least this time, we didn't have to leave." She paused. "Maybe that's a good sign though? I mean, look how well everything has worked out for Zack and Maya since then."

Cody considered that. "That's true, but it also took them a full year to get back together after she showed up. And Maya didn't show up carrying Zack's kid...thankfully. One year from now, there will be baby food served to one person on Thanksgiving. The presence of a child can complicate things in a whole myriad of ways..."

"Yeah, it can, but at the same time, I would hope that Maddie and Trevor are both more mature at 24 than Zack and Maya were at 18 almost 19...or than we were at 17..."

Cody couldn't help but nod. "I hope so too, Bails..." He paused. "I mean, look how much we've matured in the past four years or Zack and Maya in the past two and a half years. I'd like to think we've all really grown since the days where we all acted like idiots."

"Me too."

"Well, look on the bright side. We do have everything ready for in the morning now. So, that's a positive."

"True. I just hope after Maddie and Trevor get done talking that we have one more person joining us tomorrow."

"That shouldn't be a problem. We always have more than enough food." He smiled at her. "But I know what you mean. If Trevor joins us tomorrow, then it shows there is hope still left for them..."

"Yeah. I hope they can overcome their differences somehow. If not for them, then for the baby. I can't imagine if something like that had happened to us."

Cody took her hand in his. "Well, I can't either, but I'm pretty sure it would have bumped up my time frame of proposing to you..."

Bailey smiled at him. "Really?"

"Really..." He paused and teased her. "Of course, I would be worrying about the end of the world as their would appear to be another immaculate conception..."

She laughed and pushed his shoulder. "Cody!"

"I kid, I kid..." He stopped when something crossed his mind. And once it had, he brought her hand up to his lips and kissed it. "Though, I hope you know I'm not kidding when I tell you how much I love you..."

Bailey smiled at him again. "I know. I love you too. And not that I mind at all, but what brought on that spontaneous declaration of affection?"

He smiled back at her. "Well, I just remembered something Maddie said to us. Bails, we are extremely lucky. We're both doing well at school, and we have our immediate futures pretty much set in a way highly favorable to us. But what is happening to her is a reminder of what can happen when people forget what is truly important and let other variables affect their thinking. I know it happened to us too, and I'm grateful we were able to overcome it. Having you in my life is the best thing that has ever happened to me. I already know I'm the luckiest guy in the world, and I wanted to make sure you knew that I felt that way..."

"I know, Sweetie. I feel the same way about you too." She winked at him. "I mean, how many women have a fiance who is about to begin medical school and can cook the whole Thanksgiving dinner..."

Cody laughed. "I see how it is now! You only love me for my future earning potential and culinary skills!"

She leaned up and kissed. "I'd love you if you were a ditch digger and couldn't boil water. You'd still be the perfect feller for me..."

"I feel the same way about you too. That's why I sincerely do hope it works out for them. I know what its like to be happy and head over heels in love, and I can't help but want the same thing for all of my family and friends."

"I know that feeling all too well myself. And we'll be there to help them in any way we can." She leaned up and kissed him again. Of course, both realized they were all alone, and neither one of them had any inclination of breaking apart just yet. But before their kiss could grow any deeper and passionate, the door to the penthouse busted open. Almost immediate after it did, London, Zack and Maya all ran into the penthouse and began looking at them expectantly. Of course, catching them in the position they were in, Zack rolled his eyes.

"Geez...Do you two ever give it a rest? Could you not do that around the food we'll all be eating tomorrow?"

Cody sighed. "We thought we were alone..." He turned to Bailey. "This is really getting ridiculous how often we get interrupted when we do that..."

Bailey nodded. "I know. I know what I'm thankful for tomorrow - that we have our dorm room where no one can barge in on us..."

London had had enough by then. "Who cares about you two right now? Lets focus on what is important right now! Namely, was the text you sent Zack true? Is Trevor really here?"

"Yeah, he is. Trevor and Maddie are still downstairs in our suite talking."

_Back in the Suite on the 23rd Floor_

Trevor just sat there on the couch staring at Maddie. Did she really think he would do something to hurt his child like that? He couldn't think of a time when he head ever given her any inclination that he would ever do anything like that. While this wasn't exactly how he had envisioned finding out he was going to be a father, he already knew he would love that child with all of his heart and soul. He would be the best Dad to him or her that he could be. But the real question was what to do about Maddie? There was no doubt he was hurt by what she had done, and her reasoning why still didn't make a lick of sense to him. Then, for some reason, he realized that her not making any sense actually did make sense. He remembered what his older brother had told him about his wife's pregnancy. His brother had told him that with pregnant women, the question wasn't would they be crazy and unreasonable, but how crazy and unreasonable would they would be. So, after remembering all of that, he turned to face Maddie.

"Do you really think I would do that? That I would hold our child responsible for this? I would never do that..."

Maddie sighed. "Ordinarily, I know you wouldn't. But I also realize just how angry and upset you are with me, and you every right to be. I know I screwed up, but I don't want our child to suffer because of my mistakes..."

"Well, at least you didn't...you know...get it taken care of..."

She just gave him a look. "I would never have done that!"

He just looked back at her. "Oh really? Last I checked, you are as pro-choice as they come, Maddie."

"So? Trevor, I've tried to tell you this for years - being pro-choice is not the same as being pro-abortion. I fully support the right of a woman to choose what is best for her." She was getting a little heated now. "Think of me what you want, but know I never once gave any consideration to ending this pregnancy!"

Trevor held up his hand to calm her down. "Okay, okay. Settle down, Maddie. You know this is just an issue we disagree about. You know how much I value the sanctity of life..."

She smirked at him. "Except when there is an electric chair or lethal injection needle nearby, right?" She paused and smiled. "Or when there is a really big spider around and you beg me to kill it for you..."

"Hey! You know I'm petrified of those things!"

"Its still life though that you want extinguished..."

For some reason, Trevor couldn't help but to laugh out loud. That seemed like one of the 'debates' they had been having with each other for years now. Of course, while remembering the good old days made him smile, it also saddened him too. We're those days now gone forever?

Trevor slumped back into the couch more. "This is so not how I expected this to happen for us. I mean...I fully expected you to tell me one day that we were going to be parents. And, I was actually looking forward to it. But to have it happen this way?" He shook his head. "Never would have seen it coming..."

The fire had left Maddie as well. "I know. And I can fully see in retrospect just how wrong I was. I guess hindsight truly is 20/20. But at the time, I thought I was doing the right thing for everyone. I didn't want you to hate me for costing you your dream. I didn't want you to ever resent me..."

He could only pause and nod. "Well, I guess on some level I can kind of understand that. I don't like it, but I can understand it. But did it ever occur to you that we could have had it all? I mean, you could have come to London with me, and we would have still been together!"

Maddie just looked at him. "Believe me...that thought did cross my mind. But the more I thought about it, I just knew I would have been miserable living in London and being pregnant. Think about it, Trevor. The only person there I would know would have been you. I would be pregnant living in a city where I would be an ocean apart from my family and friends. And I would have been at the mercy of the health care system over there. Aren't you the same person who keeps telling me that their system never really helps anyone? Would you have trusted the health of your unborn child to something you have so little regard for?"

"Well...I...ummm..."

She continued. "And with your job, the paper would have constantly been sending you out to who knows where. If I hadn't been pregnant, that wouldn't have been a big deal. But, I was. I've never been through anything like this before, and I didn't want to be left all alone. Tell me...how often would you have really been around with you constantly being on assignments?"

He winced. "Well, if I'm honest, I probably was only at my flat to sleep while I was there..."

"See?"

Trevor sighed again. "Yeah, I can kind of see that too. But don't you think I would have changed things if I knew I had you at home pregnant?"

Maddie just gave him a look. "Do you really think you could have just told them 'No' when they wanted to send you off somewhere?"

"Well, I would have just turned down the job then!"

Maddie sighed. "And that's why I didn't tell you. I knew that was your dream job, and I wasn't going to take that away from you..."

Trevor sighed again too. "And while I think I can understand that now, it was still my decision to make..."

She could just nod. "You're right. I should have given you the chance to make it. I'll be sorry for the rest of my life that I didn't." She wiped her eyes. "Looking back now, I'm not even sure what I was thinking..."

"I can't blame you for that. Being a guy, I will never be able to understand the way pregnancy hormones can reek havoc on a woman's mind and body. I remember laughing when my brother told me all of his horror stories. But now that its happening to me, its not so funny any more..."

"I won't use hormones as an excuse..."

"My point is I know they can make you a little irrational at times. That has to count for something, right? But lets move on to some things that are more important right now. First and foremost, when are you due?"

"Towards the end of March."

Trevor just nodded again as he thought out loud. "Alright, this will give a whole new meaning to March Madness. Okay, March is when our..." He paused again before looking at Maddie again. "Do we know what we're having yet?"

Maddie shook her head. "No, not yet. The doctor asked me if I wanted to know, but I told her I wanted to be surprised. The only thing I did ask her was to make sure that there was only one in there. I've been spending a lot of time with Carey Martin. And after hearing some of her horror stories about her pregnancy, it freaked me out so much that I wanted to make sure it wasn't twins..."

He could help but to laugh at that. "I can only imagine...Twice the crazy is something I could do without right now."

"And next month, I'm starting Lamaze classes. London has agreed to go with me, so if..."

He cut her off. "Not anymore! I might have missed the first five months of your pregnancy, but I'm not going to miss the rest of it..."

"What about your job in London?"

He laughed again. "Oh, nothing to worry about there. The Seals covered for me and said I got hurt while on the job, so I'm on paid medical leave now. And I will be through the rest of my year with them. Besides, I finished all of the research I needed, so all I have to do now is write it up. I can do that anywhere. Besides, with me being on crutches, I can't really be sent out on assignments for a while..." He paused. "Besides, once the year is over, I would have been in Boston again full time as it was..."

That caught her off guard. "You would have?"

"Yeah, that was another surprise I had for you. About the same time I applied for that internship, I also applied for a job at Boston Globe. I was hoping I would get it so we could have come back here. I knew how much you were missing your family and friends. Well, I found out a couple of months ago that I got the job..."

Maddie shook her head. "Wow...when I screw up, I screw up royally..."

"I won't deny that..."

She turned to look at him. "So, what do we now?"

He paused. "That's a very good question. Maddie, you really hurt me with what you did, and I still find myself wondering where we go from here. But, the fact remains we are about to become parents in about four months. This leaves us in a real quandary..." He paused again. "But as far as I'm concerned, there's really only one thing that we can do..."

_Back up in London's Penthouse_

London, Zack and Maya all looked at each other in apprehension. For Zack and Maya, both were wondering what was happening downstairs and hoping everything was going well. London was feeling much of the same things as well as a little anger. Why hadn't her father's man called and told her that Trevor was on his way back to Boston. If she had known, she could have forewarned Maddie and maybe made things easier on her. She pulled out her phone and was about to call her father's guy and chew him out when her cell phone advised her that she had a voice mail. Clicking on the button, she listened to it.

_"Miss Tipton, this is Wally calling you back. I finally found the man you asked me to locate and confirm he is who you were looking for. I have him the message you wanted me to give him, and he is adamant about heading back to Boston as soon as possible. I'll arrange for his transportation. If you have any questions, feel free to call me back."_

When the message ended, London discovered the call had come in the day before and she threw her cell phone down in disgust.

"Stupid cell phone! It should know better than to keep a voice mail secret from me!"

She shook her head and focused her attention back on Cody and Bailey. "Okay, I want you two to tell me everything that happened when Trevor showed up. And don't leave out a single detail!"

So, Cody and Bailey recounted everything that they could remember. And the fact that stood out to everyone else was the fact that Trevor was on crutches and had a knee brace. Zack turned to Maya.

"What do you think that could be?"

She shrugged. "Could be ACL, MCL or PCL. Maybe even the patella tendon..."

Cody spoke up. "Guys, not that we're not happy to see you all, but shouldn't you all still be at work?"

London shrugged her shoulders. "Maya's last appointment today called and cancelled, so she headed to our offices to wait on Zack to get off. And I was in his office talking to them when your text came in. When he showed it to me, I decided to call it a day for all of us and we immediately headed back here..." She paused. "Are you sure there isn't anything else you remember them saying?"

Bailey shook her head. "We've told you everything we heard before they left to head down stairs."

London sighed. "I hope everything is going alright down there. If not, it will be me up all night with Maddie handing her tissues as she cries. And you might want to take everything back down to Carey's room so doesn't pull a Zack in the middle of the night too..."

Zack was offended. "Hey!"

Everyone just gave him a look.

"Still..."

Bailey shook her head. "Lets hope it does go well then..." She paused. "But until we hear anything, maybe we should try to get our minds off of what is going on down there?"

"Like what?"

Cody paused. "Well, Zack...a couple of months ago, we ran into an old 'friend' of yours at school..."

"Yeah? Who?"

"Theo..."

Zack was confused. "Theo? Who is..." He paused when it dawned on him. "You mean that punk who had me dancing like a puppet when we were kids?" He shook his head and scowled. "What's that jerk up to now?"

Bailey grinned. "Well, thanks to us, he's looking at a lifetime in prison..."

"Huh?"

Quickly, Cody and Bailey explained to the three of them about their encounter with Theo as well as their plan to turn the tables on him.

Zack just looked at his brother. "Wait a minute! You...Baby Bro...actually punched someone and basically knocked him out?"

Cody nodded. "Pretty much..."

"Huh...I guess all that working out has finally paid off for you. I still can't picture you doing that though..."

"Well, I did once pin you while I was wearing a banana costume..."

Zack rolled his eyes. "I wasn't even really trying then."

Maya spoke up. "So, Bailey...you and Gertie are talking self defense classes too?"

Bailey nodded. "Yeah. After what happened to you last summer, they sounded like a really good idea. Plus, Gertie's semester has been kind of brutal, and she says hitting the big bag has been very therapeutic."

She laughed. "Yeah, it can be."

"Plus, I like knowing I have moves to defend myself. You have that and London has her Kung Shoe..."

London spoke up. "That's Shoe Jitsu..."

"Either way..." She paused. "I do have a question though. You said you heard a crunching sound when you destroyed that guy's knee. I didn't hear one. I was trying to figure out what I did wrong."

"Did you hit him in the front or the side of the knee?"

"The front."

Maya smiled. "There you go. You do a lot more damage from the side. But our situations were a little different. I had a few moments to plan what I was going to do while you had a guy charging at you and had to react quickly."

Bailey nodded. "Yeah, I guess so. I'll have to remember that from now on..." She laughed. "Maybe I'll have to use it on Friday morning. Something tells me the crowds at the mall would back away from me if I did..."

Maya laughed too. "Not a bad idea..."

The whole time, Zack had been there thinking when something else dawned on him. "Wait a minute!" He focused his attention back on his brother. "You came up with that plan. And you came up with the one back in Kettlecorn. When did you start becoming so diabolical?"

Cody laughed. "I guess I always was to some degree. But it really comes out when I have to do something to impress or protect Bailey."

Zack shook his head and glared at his future sister-in-law. "Why couldn't you have been around when we were kids? I could have used you as an excuse to get Cody to devise some epic pranks back then!"

She laughed. "Thanks...I think."

Cody shook his head. "While I wouldn't have minded that at all, I wouldn't have minded having Maya around then too. You know, someone who can actually tame you and get you to see reason..."

"I don't know about all of that! She loves a good prank as much as I do..."

"Well, I know of one prank she never would have helped you pull..."

"Yeah, what's that?"

Cody smirked at his brother. "Do the words 'girl's volleyball team' mean anything to you?"

Zack glared back at his brother. "Yes, they do...and that's all that needs to be said about that!"

Maya laughed. "Wait a minute! What happened with a girl's volleyball team?"

"Ummmm...Nothing. Just a stupid prank we pulled."

"No, tell me what you did..."

Fortunately for Zack, he was about to get a reprieve as about that time, the door to the penthouse swung open again. Everyone just turned to see Maddie walking in with Trevor hobbled in behind her on his crutches. And both were surprised to see that there were even more people in the penthouse then when they had left.

"Shouldn't you guys still be at work?"

London rolled her eyes. "Have you already forgotten that I'm the boss! Enough about that though, what's going on with you two?"

"Well..." Maddie turned to Cody and Bailey. "...is there enough food for one more tomorrow?"

They both nodded. "Absolutely."

"Good..." She beamed. "...because my fiance is going to join us for Thanksgiving! I'm engaged!"

Now, everyone was staring at them again, but this time it was in complete shock.

London was even more surprised now than when Maddie told her she was pregnant. "You...you...you're engaged?"

Trevor smiled and nodded. "Yeah, we are. I know this isn't the most conventional way to propose..."

Cody laughed. "Don't have to tell me about that..."

"But, it was the thing to do. We still have some issues to work through, but at the the end of the day, I'm still crazy in love with Maddie..."

Maddie kept beaming. "And me with Trevor!"

"While I might not like what she did, I think I have a good understanding now of why she did." He smiled. "But I told her this was her one get out of jail free card..."

"And I told him nothing like this would ever happen again..."

"Besides, I was planning on proposing anyways and already had the ring before all of this happened. I just had to change the where and when of it..."

Cody laughed again. "Again, don't have to tell me about that..."

"But we're having a baby, and I can't wait to have my own little family..."

Maddie was still beaming. "And after being so shocked that I fainted, I happily accepted once I regained consciousness..."

Bailey smiled. "I'm so glad everything worked out for you two then..."

"Well, like Trevor said, we still have some things to work on, but I believe we can do that. Its kind of like you told me. We can't let our stubbornness get in the way ever again. And we won't..."

Trevor finished for her. "...And we love each other, and that's what's really important. What happened happened, and we can't change any of that now. But we can move forward as our little family will soon grow."

Cody nodded. "That's a good way to look at things. Its very...mature." He paused and grinned. "Now, with you two back together, I can finally ask a question that's been on my mind ever since I found out about this baby..."

"What's that?"

"Well, with you being so conservative and Maddie being so liberal, how are you going to raise your child?"

They both looked at each other and laughed. "Oh, we'll worry about that later. Something tells me we might not be as dug in with our beliefs that we thought..."

London finally spoke up again. "You're darn right you will! We have other things we need to deal with right now! Maddie, Bailey, Maya...we have a wedding to plan!" She paused. "And I just know Arturo is going to view this as a challenge with an ever expanding bride..."

Maddie shook her head. "London, I appreciate that, but we don't need anything fancy..."

"You might not need it, but you're going to get it! Thankfully, after Moseby and Tut's wedding and then working on Cody and Bailey's wedding for over a year now, I'm an old pro at this. So, come on ladies, we'll head down to the twins' suite and get to work." She paused. "And since you're the groom, I guess you can come too, Trevor. I guess you should have some say in this..."

Zack spoke up. "Hey! What about me?"

Cody threw him an apron and grinned. "Well, there is still a couple of pies left to make for tomorrow. You get to help me make them..."

Maya laughed. "I like it! Take good notes, Zack. If they're good, you can keep making them later."

Zack just sighed. "Fine..." And when everyone had left, he turned to his brother. "Should I be concerned?"

"About what?"

"Well, you proposed to Bailey from a hospital bed. Trevor proposed while on crutches. Will I know the time is right to propose to Maya when I do something to seriously hurt myself too?"

Cody just shook his head and laughed.

_Boston_

On Thanksgiving Day, all of the guys (except Cody who had to do the actual cooking) watched football while the ladies continued making plans for the impromptu wedding. Both Maddie and Trevor wanted to have it done before the baby arrived, so that only gave them four months. And by a twist of luck, they found a Saturday in mid February that would work out to be perfect – Valentine's Day. Since it was that day though, Maddie wanted it to be early in the afternoon so that it didn't interfere with everyone else could still make plans with their significant other for that evening.

Of course, Trevor figured that gave him three months to get off his crutches so he could actually walk unassisted on his wedding day. And to help him out, Maya told him to contact the BU fit&rec center, and she would help him with aquatic therapy personally. The only downside was that by then, Maddie would be eight months pregnant and any kind of honeymoon where they would have to fly would be out of the question. But, London a step ahead of them. She arranged for them to have the penthouse suite at the New York Tipton so they could honeymoon there. Plus, she wanted them to be near a hospital in case Maddie went into labor early.

So, with all of the basics set and London having a new project to dive into, everything else could wait until after the meal was over. And like usual, everything was so delicious that they didn't mind Zack boasting about how good the pie he had made was. Naturally, it was a lemon one. Unlike past years though, there weren't a lot of leftovers once they were done. Trevor got to see first hand how Maddie could now eat, and he admitted he was a little frightened.

Even though they continued on planning the wedding after they ate, it didn't stop most of them from being out at the crack of dawn the next morning for Black Friday. And Zack was in luck that year. With Trevor unable to get around that well, it was decided that he should stay back at the hotel. Immediately, Zack volunteered to stay back with him to keep him company and watch more football.

By early Sunday morning, everyone was a little sad to see the holiday break over with. Especially Maya, Zack, Cody and Bailey as it meant they had to return back to school. Well, it did for Zack and Maya. For Cody and Bailey, they didn't have class on Mondays, and all they really had planned was to check on their experiments again after being gone for a week. And as Cody and Bailey were loading their bags onto a luggage cart to begin their trek back to New Haven, Maddie stopped by to see them again.

"Do you two really have to head back so soon?"

Bailey nodded. "Unfortunately, we do." She smiled. "But, we should be back soon enough. If all goes well, we won't have any finals to take which will give us an extra long Christmas break. So, by the time you begin to miss us, we'll be back again."

"Well, good luck to you both with the rest of your semester..."

Cody smiled. "Thanks. And good luck to you in your attempts at trying to reign in London. We've been there before and know how difficult it can be. And if I may offer you one suggestion...chloroform."

Maddie laughed. "I'll have to remember that..."

"Its good to see you so happy again, Maddie."

"Because I am happy. I'm about to marry the man I love..."

Bailey smiled. "Welcome to the club..." She paused. "Can I ask you a question though?"

"Of course. Name it."

"Well..." She began hemming and hawing. "As a future doctor, what kind of medication where you on that diminished the effectiveness of your birth control?"

Maddie just laughed. "As a future doctor? Yeah right! I'm betting the question is of more the personal variety, huh?"

"Well..."

"Don't worry..." She rubbed her belly. "I'm not really in any position to say anything, now am I? Besides, you two are getting married in a little over seven months. What you two do in the privacy of your own bedroom is no one else's business..."

"That's the way we see it..."

"So do it..." She grinned. "As for the med I was on..." Maddie leaned in and whispered it to Bailey.

"Ohhh...yeah, I don't think I would have to worry about that..."

"Lets just hope you don't..." Maddie grinned. "Anyways, there has been one other benefit to all of this..."

"What's that?"

Maddie laughed. "I'll end up getting married before you guys after all!"

Cody laughed too. "I guess so. But, remember, I did propose first..."

"Yeah, yeah..." She paused and smiled. "But I can safely say that you two can mark me down for a +2 on my RSVP now."

___To be Continued..._

**AN: Congrats to the 60 young men and their families who lives will be changed tonight in the NBA draft. Of course, 10% of those will Kentucky Wildcats...**___  
_


	17. Family Traditions

_Episode 17_

_"Family Traditions"_

_I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did._

_Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them._

_Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves._

_And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so..._

_New Haven_

About three o'clock that Sunday afternoon, Cody and Bailey finally arrived back at their dorm room in Berkeley North. In years past, they would have been back much earlier to work on any school work they had to do, but this year, they had nothing pressing on them to do once they got back. While others on campus were starting to freak out that finals were now only two weeks away, Cody and Bailey barely even gave them a single thought. Of their four classes they had semester, their EP&E senior project had already been turned in, and all they already already finished the Computers and the Law project before Thanksgiving and then their remaining homework for the class while they had been back in Boston. That just left them with two classes they had to worry about, and all one of them required was to keep monitoring their Biology experiments. And for their Psychology of Food class, they had already turned in their group project in there, and their final was still a week and a half away. So, that Sunday afternoon, they just hung around their dorm room enjoying the fact that they finally had some time alone without any interruptions. Well, they did for a couple of hours until Cody received a phone call from his soon to be father-in-law.

"Clyde? Hey, what's going on?"

"Uh huh...Uh huh..." Cody paused. "You want to know if I own camouflage clothes? Why?"

"Oh...OH..." His eyes went wide. "Well, I appreciate you thinking of me, but I'm going to have to run that past your daughter first. I think we both know her feelings on that matter, and to be blunt, sir, I'm the one who would take the brunt of her anger..."

"Well, okay...I'll talk to her and call you back later..."

As Cody hung up his phone, Bailey looked over at him with a questioning look on her face. "What did Daddy want?"

He paused again. "Well, Bails...it seems he and your brothers-in-law want to take me out hunting while were in Kettlecorn over Christmas break..."

Her eyes went wide. "They want you to do what?"

"They want to take me hunting. I really have no interesting in going, but I didn't want to be rude and just tell them no. I know it would be a good way to bond with them, but I also know what your position on that subject is..."

Bailey shook her head. "What did they want you to go out hunting for exactly? Do they want you to shoot some innocent looking deer or squirrel or rabbit?"

Cody paused. "Actually, no. They want me to go hunting for something called a snipe. What's a snipe?"

"Oh..." She paused too. "I think I understand now. Snipes are these pests...kind of like rodents...that try to eat up all the food for the farm animals that we've stored for the winter. Those things are evil and deserve to be hunted!"

He just looked at her in surprise. "Really?"

"Yeah..." She smiled. "So, I don't have a problem if you do go with them. As long as that's all you guys go looking for..."

"Well...Okay. I'll call your Dad back then. I guess I'm going hunting for the first time in my life..." He paused again. "And you won't hold this against me?"

Bailey laughed. "I promise..."

So Cody pulled out his cellphone to call Clyde back. And Bailey just sat there on the futon trying her best not to bust out laughing again. Fortunately, when she called her parents on Thanksgiving, her Dad had mentioned this little outing to her to forewarn her. Seems this was a tradition that her father and brothers-in-law did to essentially initiate all of the new members of the family. Having seen what had happened in the past, Bailey could hardly wait to see how Cody would handle this.

Come Monday, everyone at Yale began their final full week of classes for the semester. By Thursday, they had finished all of their homework for their Psychology of Food class and only had their final on the following Tuesday left to worry about. Of course, with having no classes on Friday or Monday, they were planning on spending four straight days studying for it. They figured that would give them a leg up on doing better on it than the rest of their classmates. Well, almost all of them. They didn't think that test would rank on the list of things Theo was currently worried about. And the following Tuesday, they were officially done for the semester. Their exam was over by 10:15, and in their final class of the semester, their Computers and the Law professor let them know their A's for the semester were already marked down without having to take the finals. He did say they could take it for kicks if they wanted to, but they declined his offer.

That evening, Cody and Bailey headed out again with Tapeworm and Gertie for their final trivia night of 2014. Of course, with how stressed Gertie looked from her final week and a half of classes, they figured it would be a good idea not to mention to her that they were officially done and could go home whenever they wanted. But, it was nice to win some more cash prizes as they did still have some Christmas shopping to do once they got back to Boston. And, they did all celebrate only having one semester left with a champagne toast before heading back to the dorm to officially begin reading week.

And until the following Monday at noon, Cody and Bailey focused all of their attention on their Biology experiments. Well, almost all of it. On Sunday afternoon, Trixie did ask for one final study session with them as her organic chemistry final was the next morning. But that next day, when they left the lab to go grab lunch, they officially cut themselves off from doing any more experiments. Whatever they had done by now would just have to be good enough for Professor Cole. That evening, before dinner, while Bailey and Gertie were in their final self defense class of the year, Cody and Tapeworm were working out for the last time that semester. And that's when Cody dropped the bomb on his friend, and Tapeworm could only shake his head in disbelief.

"You guys are really heading back to Boston in the morning?"

Cody grinned. "Yeah. We've actually been done since Tuesday at noon..."

Tapeworm just shook his head again. "Un-freaking-believable! I already thought your schedule this semester was a joke, but this is just flat out ridiculous!"

Cody laughed. "Yeah, I know..."

Tapeworm smirked at him. "Let me guess. Next thing you'll tell me is that you two have already begun doing homework for next semester already..."

Cody paused. "Well..."

He rolled his eyes. "Oh, for the love of God! You're kidding me, right?"

"Well, not really doing homework yet per se. You remember how I wanted to take our Food class this semester, and Bailey gets to pick a class for us next semester?"

Tapeworm nodded. "Yeah..."

"Well, turns out there will be quite a bit of reading in that class, so we stopped by the professor's office this afternoon hoping to pick up a copy of the reading list for next semester. Turns out, there are twenty books on it..."

His eyes went wide. "Twenty books? Are you insane? You're willingly taking a class the last semester of your senior year that requires you to read twenty friggin' books? Cody, I think you've finally lost your mind!"

Cody just shrugged. "A promise is a promise, and Bailey really wants to take this class. Trust me, there is one book on the list that I would rather drill a hole in my head with a power drill than to read, and Bailey is already giving me a hard time about it. Fortunately though, of the twenty, I've already ready sixteen of them, and Bailey has read seventeen of them. The one more she's read is the one I really don't want to. And since we'll be flying to Kansas, we've decided to pick up the ones we haven't read yet to read on the plane. Hopefully by the time next semester starts, we'll have all twenty read..."

"Yeah, while I guess I can see that, I have two words for you - Cliff's Notes!"

"I've never used them before in my life, but for this one book, I think I would. Unfortunately, they don't make them for it..."

"Sucks to be you then..." Tapeworm paused and grinned. "But we're all still taking that other gut class though, right?"

Cody just laughed. "You bet we are! I've wanted to take that class since our freshmen years! Finally my three years on the boat will come in handy..."

Tapeworm looked up at the clock in the gym. "Well, I need to get back to check on my program before dinner. Hopefully its done by now, and I can compile it while we eat..." He smirked again. "As you can see, some of us aren't lucky enough to be done quite yet..."

The next morning, Cody and Bailey packed up their things. Fortunately, they found an open spot at a parking meter that Bailey stood in and saved while Cody went to get their car. After they fed it several quarters, they began the long process of loading up the car. Before they left to head back to Boston though, they had one final brunch with Tapeworm and Gertie. Cody and Bailey wished them good luck with their finals, a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. After everyone hugged each other goodbye. Cody and Bailey headed back for their car as their friends headed back to studying. But before they could exit the dorm, someone ran up and hugged Bailey.

"Thank you both for your help on Sunday! I think I did really well on my final!"

The next thing they knew, Trixie released her embrace on Bailey and threw her arms around Cody. Unfortunately, that was the exact moment that Ox walked into the lobby and saw the site before him. It was like a bull seeing red, and he stormed over towards them as fast as he could.

"What the hell is going on here!"

Cody heard his voice, and his eyes went wide. But before he could say anything, Trixie pulled away from Cody and shook her head at her boyfriend.

"I was just thanking them both for helping me study this semester. You really need to work on your jealousy issue, Oxie..."

Cody shook his head. "Besides, for the millionth time, I'm ENGAGED to Bailey here. I'm going to marry her next summer. Quit acting like I'm the anti-christ for tutoring Trixie...Sheesh!"

Bailey was trying not to laugh, but Ox was still glaring at Cody. "So says you! I..."

"You'll do nothing! Bailey and I are done for the semester, so we're heading home. I think you need a new year's resolution of getting anger management. You have a great girlfriend who actually puts up with you. If you aren't careful, you're going to drive her away..." Cody shook his head and turned back to Bailey. "Come on...lets go home."

And with that, they headed out the door and to their car. Five minutes later, they were on the road back to Boston, less than two weeks after they had just been there. But as they drove, both had big smiles on their faces as they realized they only had one more semester of college left.

_Boston_

The following Friday was December 19th, and Zack and Maya found themselves inching closer to the finish line of their own finals period at BU. When Cody and Bailey returned back from Yale on Monday afternoon, they vowed to try to stay out of Zack and Maya's way as much as possible. But Maya had a better idea and soon put them to work helping her study for her exams in her Clinical Medicine I and Functional Anatomy classes. So, that is how three of them spent the rest of the day before BU's finals began on Tuesday morning. By the time Zack and Maya met up to grab some lunch after their finals on Friday morning, Maya had finished three of her five finals while Zack had finished three of his four. After they had placed their orders, Zack turned to Maya and sighed.

"I had almost forgotten how much of a pain in the butt these finals can be. I sure am glad I graduate next spring..."

Maya smirked at him. "Oh, shut up! You have one final left on Sunday morning, and its in your class that was only a two credit one. Don't try to get any sympathy from me right now!"

He just shook his head and laughed. "Well, unlike you, I haven't had my own personal set of tutors helping me study for mine..."

She just smiled. "Hey, over the summer, they helped me study for and nail my physics classes. And it just so happened that I had two more classes this semester that covered things they were well familiar with. Don't hate the player...hate the game." She gave him a look. "Besides, aren't you happy for me that I think I aced my Functional Anatomy exam this morning."

"Don't get cocky here. Not my fault they don't know too much about the classes I'm taking this semester..." He grinned. "Of course, my last exam in on Sunday while yours is on Monday afternoon. What should I do on Sunday evening while you still have your nose buried in a book..."

"As long as you don't get in my way, I really don't care. But if you do bother me, you might need a sweater due to how frigid it will get in the suite..."

Zack laughed. "Okay, okay. I won't interrupt you unless the hotel is on fire. But I can say one thing for sure. I won't be spending it like those two have been. They've had their noses buried in books more than we have, and they've been done with their semesters since last Tuesday!"

Maya sighed. "Yeah, that must have been nice to have had everything done so soon..."

"I used to think Tapeworm was just whining about their schedules, but that was ridiculous..." He laughed again. "Maybe I should get them to schedule my classes for me next semester? Maybe they can work some of their magic for me?"

"If they can, send them my way too..." She paused. "Though, I'm not sure if they will be receptive to helping you after you constantly keep slapping Cody upside the back of the head."

He held up his hands. "Hey, I'm not doing that because I want to...well, not entirely. Back in high school, He told me to slap him if I ever saw him reading one of the Twilight books, so that's what I've been doing."

"I doubt he was being literal when he said that..."

"I haven't seen him complain yet. And I can tell he hates reading it. What's the big deal with those books and movies anyways? Vampires and werewolves can be cool, but when you make them big wussies like that, what's the point?"

Maya laughed. "Must be a girl thing. You know, kind of like how you love all those stupid Adam Sandler movies..."

Zack's eyes went wide. "Hey! Those are some awesome flicks! Especially Big Daddy! The little boy in there reminds me of how Cody and I used to look when we were younger..."

"Oh, settle down. Besides, Cody isn't reading that book because he wants to. Bailey told me its on the reading list of a class they are planning on taking next semester. She says she enjoys listening to him gripe and complain about it though..."

He rolled his eyes. "Well, he deserves to get slapped upside the head then! Didn't they get enough of doing homework for a class they weren't in yet this past summer?" He shook his head. "I swear, they both must have overachieving in their DNA somewhere..."

She laughed again. "Well, since you two are twins, wouldn't it be in yours too?"

"Of course not! He must have gotten the mutated nerd gene while I got the cool one..."

"Uh huh...so says the guy going for his MBA after he graduates."

"At least I'm not going to worry about next semester until next semester..."

Maya just shook her head. "How about we change the subject to something a lot more pleasant? Like, how about the fact that Christmas is less than a week away." She gave him a look. "Since you didn't go with us on Black Friday, have you got your shopping done yet or will you be out with the other guys on Christmas Eve?"

"While I'm done quite yet, I will be well before then..."

"Let me guess...you plan on doing that on Monday while I'm doing my last minute cramming for my last final?"

Zack grinned. "Of course. But, I have to be done by two so I can pick up Mimi at the airport at three. And from there, we'll head back over here to BU to pick you up once you're done. Besides, she says she can't wait to see all of us again."

"I can't wait to see her again either. I'll never forget when I was still fighting to get myself back into your life how warm, kind and supportive of me she was. That really meant a lot to me."

"Well, she's very protective of her grandsons and only wants what's best for them. She immediately liked Bailey too, so once she knew Cody was in good hands, she turned her attention to me. She knows I'm in good hands now too, so she's turned her attention to bridge and canasta." He laughed. "So, if she asks you to play, you've been forewarned."

Maya laughed. "I'll keep that in mind. And speaking of relatives coming into town, my parents say they can wait to spend Christmas with us here in Boston too."

He shook his head. "Have I mentioned lately how incredibly lucky your Dad is? I mean, seriously? He's gotten all of us tickets for the Christmas Day game at the TD Garden between the Celtics and Lakers. Babe, that's going to be awesome!"

She laughed again. "I know...I might even root for the Celtics for once. As much as I dislike the Celtics as a Knicks fan, I hate Kobe Bryant even worse. I still can't believe he won't retire yet or that his wife took him back..."

"Because he still gives her over twenty million reasons a year why..."

"True I guess..."

"Anyways, I know my Mom can't wait to finally meet your parents. I sincerely hope that goes well and everyone gets along..."

"Don't worry, they will. My parents really like you, and your Mom seems to really like me too. I bet it will go just as smoothly as when you finally met them..."

Zack just gave her a look. "Have you forgotten that I almost soiled myself when your Dad told me he knew you were going to Vermont with me?"

Maya grinned. "No, but they do know we're living together now, so there aren't any more bombs like that to go off..."

"I sure hope so..."

"Well, we need to hurry up and eat so I can get back to the Tipton. Cody and Bailey are packing up to head back to Kansas tomorrow, so I want to get them to help me for as long as they can..."

_Kettlecorn_

That next day, Cody and Bailey caught their flight from Boston to Tulsa and landed in Oklahoma's second largest city about five o'clock that afternoon. After getting their rental car, they loaded it up and began the drive north towards Kettlecorn. As opposed to previous Christmas trips back, they found this one to be by far the easiest. They certainly didn't miss having to deal with layovers in Atlanta or freak weather that would cause them to spend endless ours in the Hartsfield Airport. And despite in being late December, the weather outside was a overcast and about forty degrees. Just before dinner time, they finally pulled in front of the Pickett family farm house. And like usual, Clyde was outside working when they got there. He told them to head on inside as dinner was just about ready, and he'd see them there in a few minutes. An hour later, everyone had eaten and was still sitting around the kitchen table.

Clyde grinned at Cody and Bailey. "So, I'm betting you two are on cruise control now with having only one semester of college left to go and your wedding all planned."

Bailey grinned back at her father. "I think we finally are. The last thing we had to take care of was to find a place for us to live next year near Harvard's medical school, and London helped us out with that. So, our list of things to do before we get married only has registering and graduation left on it. And London is taking us out to register after the first of the year. So, we're hoping we can just enjoy our final semesters at Yale."

"Well, I guess that doesn't give us much time to finally see what that place looks like, huh?"

Cody spoke up. "Have you seen the most recent Indiana Jones movie?"

Clyde nodded a little confused. "Yeah, why?"

"The place they used as a college setting in the beginning of the movie was Yale's campus. The library they road the motorcycle through is right next to our dorm."

"Whoa...that's pretty cool!" He paused. "Well, except for how bad that movie sucked..."

Cody could only nod. "Yeah, that was bad..."

Eunice just shook her head and laughed. "Anyways, the ones of us that can make it have already booked our plane tickets and hotel reservations so we can be their for your graduation in May. I just wish we hadn't been so busy still recovering from the twister to make your high school one." She turned to Cody and smiled. "And it will be nice to see your mother again. Plus, I can't wait to finally meet your father and grandmother."

He smiled back. "They can't wait either. All my Mimi could talk about in her last phone call to me was how proud she was that her grandson and soon to be granddaughter were about to be college grads. Fortunately, our graduation at Yale is on a Monday, and BU's is the following Saturday. Thankfully, they don't conflict with each other."

"That's good. We're due to fly out on a Saturday and land in Hartford."

"Just let us know when your flight is supposed to arrive, and we'll be there to pick you guys up."

Eunice smiled again. "Will do..." She paused. "Speaking of taking trips though, I think what you two have chosen to do for your honeymoon is very responsible. Putting it off until right before you start medical school sounds like a wonderful idea. You should both be well rested before orientation."

Bailey spoke up before Cody could as she remembered his response to when she said the same thing. "We were thinking the exact same thing, Momma. Plus, this way, we won't have to fly halfway around the world from Honolulu."

Clyde shook his head. "Well, I admire you two. I don't know if I would have had the guts to do it if I were you guys, but I respect that you two are heading back to Paris for your honeymoon."

Cody smiled. "Well, we figured we should give it it another chance there. Paris is supposed to be one of the most romantic cities in the world, but we royally screwed that up the last time. Hopefully, this time we'll be able to enjoy the city a lot more and write over the past memories we have there."

Bailey squeezed his hand. "I already know we will. I can't wait for us to go back."

Eunice paused. "Cody, you aren't planning on doing anything this time are you?"

He laughed. "Trust me, I've learned my lesson. I am trying to arrange for us to have a romantic dinner on top of the Eiffel Tower, but I can promise you that I won't try to practice it this time. I should have known then that an evening I get to spend with Bailey would already be perfect no matter what."

"Good."

Bailey smiled. "Besides, we're only going to be in Paris for four days before we head off to Majorca."

Clyde frowned. "Where?"

"Majorca. Its an island of the coast of Spain in the Mediterranean Sea. There is a Tipton resort there that supposedly is Wilfred Tipton's favorite place to vacation. In fact, we're going to have his private villa there for ten days. Its on the edge of the property, and is separated from the rest of it by an electric fence..." She paused. "According to London, he really likes his privacy..."

Cody laughed. "But, we'll still have use of the entire property as well as a golf cart to get us back and forth between the main building and the villa. And it has its own private cove, so we'll have our own private beach while were there. Essentially, we'll have the best of both worlds."

Grammy grinned. "I bet you will...if you two ever..."

Bailey cut her off. "And once we get back from there, we'll have a few days to re-acclimate to Boston before orientation." She paused and turned to her sister Amy. "Speaking of first year orientation, have you made a decision yet on where you will be matriculating to next fell?"

She shook her head and sighed. "Its like I keep telling everyone else...when I know, I'll let you know. I'm still weighing the pros and cons of Yale, Brown and Harvard..."

"Well, just remember, if you choose Harvard, you'll have us there in Boston just across the river..."

Amy nodded and teased her sister. "I know...I'm still debating on whether or not that would be a good or bad thing."

Clyde just shook his head and laughed. "Either way, it looks like I'll have two daughters at an Ivy League school." He just smiled and nudged Eunice. "You know they get that from me, right?"

Everyone at the table just stopped and gave him a look. Eunice shook her head. "Anyways...do you two have big plans for New Year's Eve yet? Two years ago was New York City and last year was Miami. Where to this year?"

Bailey smiled. "Actually, we have no plans as of yet. I think this year we're just going to play it by ear. The past two years we've seen the extremes of weather from freezing our butts off in Times Square to sweating them off on South Beach. But I wouldn't mind to just stay in this year and watch the ball drop on TV. As long as I have Cody there with me, I really don't care..."

Clyde looked over at his soon to be son-in-law. "Speaking of time, be ready to head out tomorrow evening at sunset. The snipes don't come out while the sun is still up."

Cody nodded, but he missed the looks everyone else had on their faces. The next evening, Cody was dressed up in Zack's old fatigues that he borrowed and was ready to head out. And when his soon to be brothers-in-law all finally showed up, all of the men headed out.

Grammy couldn't help but to laugh. "That poor boy..."

"Grammy, I know Cody. He's tougher than he looks. He'll be fine..."

"Oh, I know...but you know how he is about cleanliness..."

Bailey paused. "True..."

About ten o'clock that evening, the ladies were sitting around the family room when Clyde walked in with a big smile on his face.

"We're back! Bailey, you're up!"

She just nodded, and everyone followed Clyde out to the barn. Standing there were her brothers-in-law with Cody tied to a post in the barn - covered in mud from head to toe.

Clyde grinned again. "Cody, I hate to tell you this, but there are no such things as snipes. We took you out and gave you a hard time as kind of an initiation into the family. Everyone else here has gone through this exact same thing, and from now on, you will be a part of it too - on the good end. I hope you won't be too upset with us, but this is a family tradition of ours. But, there is one part left. With you covered in mud, your soon to be bride must still be willing to kiss you. Bailey, are you willing to do that?"

She smiled. "Of course I am, Daddy..." She walked over and laid a very passionate kiss on Cody as everyone else gave them catcalls. When she was done, she pulled back and had mud on her face as well.

Clyde laughed. "Cody, you're now officially a Pickett. Welcome to the family!"

Cody just smiled. "Thank you, Clyde."

"Now, its cold outside, so we're all heading inside, but Bailey will stay out here and hose you off. She should have some clean clothes for you to put off once you're clean..."

And with that, everyone else left to head inside leaving Cody and Bailey alone in the barn. She smiled at him. "Sorry about that, Sweetie. But like Daddy said, its a family tradition. Everyone else has been through this too."

He shrugged as best as he could. "Its okay..." He paused. "Besides, its not like I didn't know it was coming..."

That surprised her. "You did? How?"

Cody laughed. "Did you forget that I used to be an amateur ornithologist? I used to be in the birdwatchers club my freshman year at Cheavers. Bails, when you said would be hunting snipes and that they were rodents, my internal alarms went off for the second time that day. I wasn't quite sure what a snipe was, but I was pretty sure that it was a type of wading bird..."

"Oh..."

He kept grinning. "Of course, I did look it up on wikipedia to make sure I had that right. And wouldn't you know it, there was a link to something called a snipe hunt. It was then that I realized I was going to go on something akin to a wild goose chase. But, it said it was usually used as a right of passage, so I figured I would just play along..."

Bailey smiled at him. "Well, thank you for doing that. And I'm sorry I had to deceive you about this..."

"Oh, I'll get my revenge as soon as you untie me..."

She laughed. "Wouldn't be the first time I've had a mud bath..." She paused as she thought of something. "Wait a minute! You said your internal alarms went off for the second time that day. What set them off the first time?"

"Oh, that was an easy one. You were agreeable to be going out hunting. When I heard you say that, I definitely knew something was afoot!"

_Boston_

Thursday finally brought with it Christmas, and that morning, much to Zack's relief, things went well with the Bennetts finally meeting Carey and Mimi. Of course, the game that after made things even better as the rebuilding Celtics were able to knock off the Lakers in dramatic fashion. And to celebrate, Mr. Bennett took everyone out for a very nice dinner. Unfortunately, Maya's parents couldn't stay longer as there was an NFL game one Mr. Bennett's clients was playing on Saturday in San Diego. And everyone else understood. If they had their choice, they'd rather be in San Diego than Boston in late December. So, for the next couple days after Christmas, everyone was taking it easy around the hotel. By the time Sunday came around, Zack and Maya were lounging on the couch just watching television. But both of them weren't paying much attention to what was on as they were both on the verge of falling asleep. And just before she did, Maya yawned and turned to Zack.

"What time is it?"

Zack groggily pulled out his cell phone and checked it. "A little after three..."

"What does does Cody and Bailey's flight get in tonight?"

"We need to leave her by a quarter after nine to pick them up..."

Maya nodded yawned again. "Perfect. I have plenty of time to slip in a nap and still be up well before we have to leave to go pick them up..."

Zack yawned too. "Sounds good to me. Why is it the holidays always wear me out?"

"I don't know, but they do the same to me. Though, I do have to say Christmas was a huge success..."

"Yeah, it was..." He grinned. "The C's beat the Lakers!"

She rolled her eyes. "You know what I mean. Our two families seemed to get along pretty well with each other..."

"Yeah, they did. Of course, I think my Mom would have stowed away in the overhead compartment on their flight so she could have gone to San Diego with them. And then from there, there heading over to Tempe Arizona for the Fiesta Bowl. I seriously doubt they'll see any snow in either of those two places..."

"She wasn't the only one who would have! Have you seen the weather report for New Year's Eve here in Boston? When they talked about the potential snowstorm we're going to get, I heard the word feet instead of inches!"

Zack shrugged. "It happens. Hopefully, it will all be gone before we start back to school."

"Tell me about it. Even though we use the subway, I'd prefer not to be outside at all if the weather is still that bad then..."

He turned to her. "So, if it does hit us like it could, what do you want to do for New Year's?"

Maya paused to think about that. "You know, to be honest, if it does, I'd be just as happy to stay in that night. At least we'd be some place with heat and food..."

He nodded. "Works for me..." Zack yawned again. "I better set the alarm on my cell phone just in case. I feel a major nap coming on right now..."

"Same here..."

"I'm almost looking forward to going back to work tomorrow morning. I love Christmas and all, but it will be nice to get back into our normal routines again..."

"You can say that again." She yawned. "See you in a couple of hours, Babe..."

Several hours later, both of them woke up to the annoying alarm on Zack's phone and and wiped away the remaining sleep from their eyes. Both could have used a few more hours and figured going to bed once they got back sounded like a really good idea. An hour later, they were waiting with the car idling a out front of the Logan Airport Departure exit. About fifteen minutes, when they finally saw Cody and Bailey walk out, Zack popped the trunk for them.

"You guys have fun in Kansas?"

Bailey yawned. "Yeah, but we're both exhausted. And its not like we actually did anything..."

Cody shook his head. "Speak for yourself, Sweetie...You didn't go snipe hunting."

Zack and Maya just looked at each other when they heard that and busted out laughing.

_New Year's Eve_

New Year's Eve was that Wednesday, and everyone spent the entire day inside the hotel. Not because they wanted to, but because they had to. The weatherman had actually been right for once, and everyone woke up that morning with the ground blanketed with snow with even more of it continuing to fall. And as it approached noon that day, there were no signs of the blizzard letting up any.

Zack just shook his head. "Good thing we didn't have to work today..."

Maya just nodded. "Tell me about it. I think I would have called in snowbound anyways..."

"Yeah, it hasn't snowed this hard here in a long time." Cody paused and began laughing. "You remember the last time it snowed like this while we were here at the Tipton, Zack?"

He paused to think. "Was that the Christmas we we're supposed to go away with Dad, but we ended up getting snowed in here?"

"Yeah..." He shivered and turned to Bailey. "Looks like you're going to get your wish of just staying in tonight..."

She shrugged. "Fine with me. But with us snowed in, do we have enough food in here to fix ourselves some dinner tonight?"

Cody stopped to think. "No, we don't. I say we call downstairs and get a reservation in the dining room for later. I would go out to the store to get things to fix us something, but I don't want to go outside..."

Zack nodded. "I don't blame you. We might want to call room service now to go ahead and order a bottle of champagne for later too. With everyone else here at the hotel likely stuck inside too, they might run out later."

"Good call. You call room service, and I'll call the dining room."

Fifteen minutes later, they had reservations for dinner at 8:00 and a few bottles of champagne chilling in the refrigerator.

"Well, that didn't take long...What should we do now?"

Bailey spoke up. "We could play some board games?"

Maya shook her head and laughed. "Been there before and got creamed. How about some video games instead?"

Cody laughed this time. "And I've been there before and got creamed."

Bailey paused before smiling. "How about we head down to the game room and play some ping pong?"

Maya shrugged. "Works for me..."

Zack paused though. "I don't know. Something is telling me this is not a good idea..."

"Oh, come on...it'll be fun."

Halfway through the first game, Zack and Maya were down 15-3. He just shook his head and smirked at her. "It'll be fun she says! Now I remember why this was a bad idea. Those two were on the their college's intramural ping pong team!"

Bailey grinned. "And not to brag, but we were four time intramural champions..."

Zack sighed. "I should have seen this coming. I even went to one of their matches once..." He glared at them. "I hope you know that we will demand a rematch in something else!"

Cody grinned this time. "Darts then?"

"Uh uh. I remember you telling me that Bailey is a dead eye in that too. We'll choose the field of battle though!"

"That's fine. Too bad we don't have a miniature golf course here like we did on the boat..."

"True..." Zack paused and laughed. "I still remember seeing the captain's face when I replaced his ball with one made out of baby powder. He about freaked out when it exploded on him." He shook his head. "Ahhh...the good old days..." He turned to Maya and grinned. "That reminds me...I still owe you one."

She grinned back. "You think so, huh?"

"I know I do. And I just might pull in the Codester and pick his diabolical mind for ideas..."

Cody held up his hands. "Hey, leave me out of this..."

Bailey nodded. "Yeah, less talky and more game playing!"

Zack rolled his eyes. "Fine then! Foosball it is!"

Unfortunately, they weren't the only ones who remembered the game room and thought it would be a good way to pass the time stuck indoors. Before long, the game room began to get too crowded as there were long lines waiting to play every game inside of there. So, the four of them headed back up to the suite to take advantage of another perk of living in the hotel – movies they could order on the TV. Of course, finding one they could all agree on took a few minutes, but they finally did.

As the afternoon finally gave way to the evening, everyone checked the weather once again. And just as they had saw at noon, it was still snowing heavy.

Zack shook his head. "Times like this I'm glad we're up on the 23rd floor...We'd have a while before the snow gets this high..."

Cody just looked at his brother in disbelief. "If the snow ever got this high, we'd have much bigger things to worry about than that..."

Bailey nodded. "Exactly. That much snow up on the roof would would weigh a whole lot and cause the entire hotel to collapse on to itself. We'd all be crushed to death..."

Maya shuddered. "That's a pleasant thought..."

Cody checked his watch. "Anyways, I say we start getting ready for dinner. Its almost seven o'clock now."

Dinner that evening was a welcome a distraction from the weather outside. And it turned out to be a lot of fun as Carey and Mimi joined them, and everyone took their time enjoying their dinner and desserts. Of course, Carey had the look on her face that only a mother could have as she watched her children drinking a glass of wine for the first time. And she could only sigh when everyone said they had enjoyed the pinot noir they had for dinner and ordered another bottle to take back upstairs with them. It was close to ten o'clock before they all headed back up to the twins' suite to officially ring in the new year.

From there on, the final two hours of 2014 were spent hanging out and watching all the hoopla unfold on TV. Unfortunately, it just wasn't the same without Dick Clark anymore. However, they did notice that Boston wasn't the only major city getting hit hard by the blizzard as New York City was as well. Everyone in Times Square, except for the ones who were already drunk, looked absolutely miserable.

Bailey shivered. "I sure am glad we're not there this year..."

Cody wrapped his arm around her tighter. "You can say that again..." He paused and smiled. "But here's a pleasant thought for you. This time next year, we'll be preparing to spend our first new years as husband and wife..."

She turned and smiled at him. "Yeah, we will. I can't wait for that...And we'll be able to go up to our roof top deck and watch the local fireworks display...you know, if it doesn't get snowed out then too."

Eventually, it grew closer to midnight. And about ten minutes before it did, Zack and Maya headed into the kitchen to open one of the bottles of champagne and pour a glass for everyone. After handing them out, they all stood around the TV as they watched the ball finally began to drop. When it did, both of the couples shared kisses before everyone hugged each other and wished them a happy new year.

And that was when Mimi spoke up. "I'd like to propose another toast. This one to both of my grandsons and the ladies who make them both so happy." She looked down at her empty glass. "I think we need more champagne though."

Cody headed towards the kitchen. "I'll get it." He pulled out the bottle, but the cork on this one was being a little stubborn and refusing to twist out. "Guess I'm going to have to get the corkscrew for this one..." He went over to the drawer to get it when he noticed something else lying on the counter. That something was an envelope, and he picked it up.

"Ummm...Zack? What's this?"

Zack looked over at his brother. "Oh that...Its a letter to you from Harvard that came while you two were in Kettlecorn. I guess I forgot all about it...My bad."

Bailey frowned. "Did I get one too?"

"I don't think so..."

Cody looked at the envelope closely. "Don't worry, Bails, I didn't get one either. Zack, just how closely did you look at this?"

He shrugged. "I saw the Harvard logo and tossed it on the counter. Why?"

"Well...for one...this envelope isn't addressed to me. Its addressed to you..."

Zack looked up at him in confusion. "It is? Are you serious?"

"Yeah, and its from the Harvard's business school, not its medical school..."

"Huh...I guess they didn't forget about me after all..." He shrugged again. "Oh well, its probably just a form letter telling me thanks for applying, but then asking me in a really nice way what I was thinking..."

"Well, open it then and see what it says. I didn't even know you applied there, Bro..."

He walked over to the kitchen and grabbed the envelope from his brother's grasp. "Not like I ever had a chance to get in anyways..." He opened it and pulled out the letter inside. "Dear Mr. Martin...yadda yadda yadda...We would like to officially..." He paused and his eyes went wide.

Maya walked over to him. "What is it, Zack?"

Zack turned to look at her with a look of complete look of shock on his face. "Harvard accepted me. I got in..."

_To be Continued..._

**AN: For the family induction ceremony, I may have borrowed the basic premise of a fraternity lavaliering ceremony. So, that's why Cody was tied to a pole. And, I'm pretty sure most people saw the end of this chapter coming for a while now. But don't worry, not everyone will be happy about Zack getting accepted. **_  
_


	18. No Chance in Heck

_Episode 18_

_"No Chance in Heck"_

_I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did._

_Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them._

_Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves._

_And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so..._

_The Suite on the 23rd Floor_

While the noise of the New Year's celebrations from the television still filled the room, everyone who was physically there was stunned into silence. All of them, for a myriad of different reasons couldn't believe what they had just heard. Zack had been accepted into Harvard's Business School? Once their initial shock had warn off, Carey and Mimi found themselves bursting with pride. Next to them, Cody and Bailey were still surprised to hear that Zack had even applied to Harvard as he had never mentioned it to them at all. As far as they knew, he wanted to stay at BU, and once he got accepted there, that was the end of the story. And next to them was Maya. She couldn't help but to beam at her boyfriend. At the same time, she was feeling love, pride and a dash of 'I told you so!' all mixed together. Of course, Zack himself just held the letter in his hands as he continued staring at it and reading over and over what it said. And his feelings at the moment were hard for even him to figure out at the moment. Yes, he was surprised and caught completely off guard, but the overriding emotion he was having right then was pure, unadulterated terror. This was so not what he had had expected or wanted. And as if on impulse, he immediately held the letter away from him as if it were a snake about to strike and bite him. He could only ask himself how this had happened Zack. Not able to come up with any answers, Zack could only shake his head as he tried to wrap his mind around all of this.

"What just happened here?"

By then though, Maya had thrown her arms around him and engulfed him in a tight embrace. "I'm so proud of you, Zack! I told you that you could get in to Harvard!"

But he was still in too much of a shock to hug her back. This was all way too much for him to process right then. "They accepted me? But...but...but...why would they do that?"

Cody shook his head and laughed. "Congrats, Bro. I didn't even know Harvard was on your radar as a potential business school. Why didn't you tell us that you had applied there?"

Zack looked over at his brother. "Because I didn't think I had a chance in..." He paused and remembered his mother and grandmother were standing in the room with him. "...heck of getting in! I wasn't even going to apply there in the first place, but Maya told me I should just to see what happened..."

Bailey laughed too. "Well, it looks like she was right!"

"I guess. I mean, she told me not to suicide it and to apply to ever other MBA program in the Boston area. But Harvard never crossed my mind as I thought we were still banned from there. I didn't know they had changed presidents..."

That caught Carey's attention. "Wait a minute! You two were banned from Harvard? Why?"

Zack and Cody looked at each other. "Long story, Mom..." He paused. "But when you and Bailey said you had applied to medical school there and were asked in for interviews, Maya convinced me to give it a shot myself. But I still didn't think I had a chance in...heck of getting in. And then when I heard about what happened to you in your interview there, I pretty much forgot all about Harvard. I mean, I was following your mantra that Harvard didn't exist..."

Carey was even more confused now and turned to Cody. "Okay, hold on a second! What happened to you in your interview at Harvard?"

He paused. "Nothing to worry about now, Mom. It all worked out in the end. Besides, we should be celebrating Zack being accepted to Harvard right now..."

Zack looked at the letter again and sighed. "Yeah, celebrate it..."

Maya just smiled at him. "I think you're still in shock, Babe. But remember, you have the opportunity of a lifetime in right there your hands! This is the most amazing news I've ever heard...you know, since you asked me to be your girlfriend again..."

"If you say so..." Zack began looking around the room at the expression on everyone's faces and he began to feel a little queasy. All of the looks of pride with the high expectations they carried were beginning to freak him out, and he felt his legs begin to go numb. "I need to sit down..." Quickly, he stumbled over to the couch and sunk back into it.

Mimi just chuckled. "Well, I think we definitely have a reason to make another toast now! Wait until I tell all of my friends back in Seattle that both my grandsons are Harvard bound now!"

That was more than he could take, and Zack began shaking his head. "Whoa, whoa, whoa! Not so fast there, Mimi! While Harvard may have accepted me, I haven't decided whether or not I'm going to accept them or not..."

Maya sat down next to him with a concerned look on her face. "Why wouldn't you, Zack? Its the best business school in the world..."

Zack gulped trying to come up with a reason why that everyone would buy. "Ummm...because I need to run this past Moseby and London first. I mean, Harvard will cost at least three times as much money as BU would per year. Since London has said the company is going to foot the bill for me to continue my education, I think it only fair that I should give her a little say in how she spends her money..."

He looked around to see if everyone was buying that, and he sighed to himself when it looked like they were going to. But just when he thought he had bought himself some time, Bailey spoke up though.

"Zack, I don't think you have anything to worry about there though. Not even taking into account that she is your friend, from a purely business standpoint, I can see London encouraging you to go to Harvard. I mean, London wants the best of the best, and that includes having the future head of her company be a Harvard MBA grad. Don't you think so too?"

He shrugged. "I have absolutely no idea..." He sighed. "Sorry if I seem like a downer here, but I'm still having trouble believing this is even really happening to me. I swear...I never thought I had a snowball's chance in...heck of getting in there. Like I said, I mainly applied there just to make Maya happy. I've never considered the possibility of going there. I mean, they've seen my transcripts. What were they thinking?"

Cody laughed again. "Never underestimate the power of diversity, Bro..."

Zack just looked up at his brother and smirked. "Ummm...Codester, in case you haven't noticed - and you should have because we're twins, I'm a blonde hair, blue eyes middle class white male. I'm the poster child for a lack of diversity!"

He laughed again. "That's not the kind of diversity I was talking about, Zack. Did you ever wonder why Bailey and I chose Ethics, Politics & Economics to be our other major along side of Biology?"

"Not really. I just kind of figured that was something you both were interested in..."

"Well, yeah, it was, but there's a lot more to it than just that..."

Bailey continued for him. "What Cody is trying to say is that everyone applying to medical school was going to more than likely have a degree in either biology or chemistry or another one of the sciences. Yes, we'll have a degree in biology too, but our other major in EP&E helps us stand out compared to other applicants. It shows that our educational backgrounds are diverse from the typical medical school applicant."

"Its the same with you. Most people who apply to business school probably have degrees in economics or management or accounting or something like that. I'm sure they are constantly on the look out for other people from different majors that would bring unique viewpoints to their program. You know, such as hospitality administration."

Maya looked a them. "You mean sort of like what happened in Legally Blonde where her degree in fashion merchandising actually helped her get into Harvard Law School?"

Bailey smiled. "Exactly!"

Zack just shook his head again. "Sorry I brought it up, but I don't think that really matters right now."

Carey turned to him. "Why not?"

He sighed. "This is just so much for me to take in right now, and I need time to digest this. I need time to figure out what it is what I really want to do, and I need a chance to talk to Moseby and London. Above all, I just need time to think. Can you all understand that?"

Everyone paused before nodding their heads. "Of course we can. We just want you to do what makes you happy, Zack..."

He sighed again. "Right now, what would make me happy would be to forget all about this for a little while. I mean, its not even one in the morning yet on New Year's Day. We still have some celebrating to do. But, I promise...when I finally figure all of this out, you all will be the first to know..."

Fortunately for Zack, everyone else gave him his space and didn't bring up the H-word the rest of the weekend. But, he could still see them looking at him when they didn't think he was paying attention. When Monday rolled around, Zack was actually happy to return back to work. Of course, he was even happier when he found out that London and Todd had decided to extend their vacation for a couple of more weeks which meant it would be two more weeks before he would have to bring Harvard up to London. Hearing that good news, he felt like doing cartwheels down the hallway, but he refrained from doing so. By the time he left to go home that day, he was actually feeling great. But when he got back to the suite, he knew something was up when everyone was there sitting on the couch waiting on him again.

"Uh oh...What now? Did I get another envelope in the mail?"

Maya smiled. "Yeah, you did. But this time, its from the BU registrar. All of our grades finally came in the mail today..."

Zack sighed in relief. "Oh...Okay, might as well see what the damage is."

But there wasn't hardly any damage to speak of. Zack had pulled three A's and a B to give him a fall semester GPA of a 3.71. As for Maya, she had pulled four A's and a B for a GPA of 3.77, and she couldn't resist the urge to tease him that her GPA was higher than his by six hundredths of a point. Of course, she did remember to thank Cody and Bailey again as two of her A's were classes they had helped her study for her finals in. As for Cody and Bailey though, they got the good news they were hoping for and had come to expect. Another 4.0 left them one semester away from graduation with a perfect cumulative 4.0. But, to be fair, they only had three classes listed on their grade sheets as they wouldn't get a grade in their Biology senior project until they completed the second semester of it that spring. But, as it was now early January, that meant that the beginnings of their final semester at Yale were only a few days away.

_New Haven_

While Yale's dorms were scheduled to re-open on that Wednesday, January 7th, classes weren't going to begin back until the following Monday. Normally, Cody and Bailey had no real reason to hurry back as soon as the dorms reopened, but this year they did. Unlike the previous semester, they would have access to the Biology labs as early as that Wednesday, and they wanted to head back to check on the status of the experiments they still had going on as soon as possible. After all, it had been almost a month since they had last been on campus, and their curiosity as to how they were proceeding make it an easy decision for them. Plus, they thought having a few extra days of working on them would be highly beneficial later on. Fortunately for them, by the morning of the 7th, the weather was being much more cooperative than it had been the previous week. Even so, Carey tried to talk them into staying until the weekend, but they remained firm in their intentions to head back to New Haven that day. Of course, they did have to promise to drive slowly and call her as soon as they arrived back on campus.

The rest of the week back at school, they did indeed spend several hours every day in the Biology lab. But despite their fears, all of their experiments were running smoothly, and all of them should be finished by the middle of February. So, they had plenty of time until school started to finish the last of their reading for the class Bailey had chosen for them to take that semester. And on Saturday afternoon, Gertie and Tapeworm finally returned to school too.

"Glad to see you guys still remembered where this place was. I mean, it had been a month since you'd been here."

Cody laughed. "I know, but we couldn't wait to get back and get our final semesters under way..."

Tapeworm shook his head. "I bet you are. Do I even need to ask if your schedules are jokes again?"

Turns out, he didn't. Seems Cody and Bailey really liked having Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays off to work on their senior projects the semester before and lucked out that their schedule in the spring would allow them to maintain it. As mentioned before, they had spent a good part of their winter break reading several books on a reading list for the class Bailey really wanted to take - ENGL 358, Literature for Young People. Among the titles they would be covering that semester were _Charlotte's Web_, _Where the Wild Things Are_, _Stuart Little_, _Pinocchio_, _Wonderful World of Oz_, _Little Women_, _Adventures of Huckleberry Finn_, _Six By Seuss: Treasury of Classics, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone _and to Cody's dismay, _Twilight_, the first book of the Twilight series. When he had finally finished reading it, Bailey had asked him if it had really been that bad. He could only look at her and say it had been even worse that he ever could have imagined. Fortunately, the class fit in their schedule by only meeting once a week on Tuesday afternoons from 1:30-3:20. And they wouldn't be taking it by themselves as Gertie really wanted to take it too. After she had about killed herself the previous fall with her schedule, she had room in her schedule for the class. Everyone tried to talk Tapeworm into joining them in the class, but after he had seen the reading list for it, he politely declined.

Of course, their second class for the semester would be, MCDB 486, the second semester of their Biology senior project. Their plan was to finish up their research by Valentine's Day and spent the rest of their semester writing up their findings and preparing the presentation they would have to make. While that would be the final Biology class they would ever take, they only had one last EP&E class they had to take too - an advanced seminar. Since they had enjoyed working with Dr. Ryan the previous semester, they decided to sign up for the seminar she was teaching that spring - EP&E 312, Moral Choices in Politics. Well, to be honest, it came down to it and another seminar, but her class fit the schedule they wanted as it would meet on Thursday afternoons from 1:30-3:20. And the other added bonus was that she only required students who had already completed their senior projects to do a twenty page paper in the class. That was just fine with Cody and Bailey.

That left them only one class to fit into their schedule, and once again they lucked out that it fit in with their desired schedule. And unlike their other gut class, Tapeworm as chomping at the bit to take this class with everyone. And like Cody had said previously, he and Bailey felt their adventures on the boat would give them a unique vantage point to bring to the class. On Tuesday and Thursday mornings from 10:30-11:45, they four of them would taking ANTH 172, Great Hoaxes and Fantasies in Archaeology. Not only was the subject matter completely fascinating to them, they had heard it was a relatively easy class by Yale standards. Naturally, there would be a huge list of people wanting to take it, but once again, seniority would have its privileges.

So, with only having classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays like the previous semester, they would have Mondays and Wednesdays to do their work on their Biology senior projects while Friday was set aside to do their homework in their other classes. Of course, it still wouldn't be a beginning to the semester without Tapeworm once again complaining about Cody and Bailey's schedules.

"Geez..." He shook his head. "I thought I was doing good to have Fridays off. I seriously don't know how you guys keeping doing this. Every semester, you keep finding new ways to make your schedules even more and more ridiculous. And on top of that, two of your classes are across the courtyard in Harkness while your advanced seminar in downstairs in Bass Library. This is your biggest joke of a schedule yet..."

Gertie just rubbed his shoulder. "You don't have much room to complain this semester, Howie. Your schedule is pretty user friendly too..."

He sighed. "I know, but this is our last semester that we'll all be together here. Its become tradition for me to gripe about their schedules. I won't get to next year..."

Cody smiled. "Tell you what. Once we find out our schedules for our first semesters of medical school, we'll send you a copy of them. Then you can call us and gripe and moan all you want about them..."

Tapeworm laughed. "I seriously doubt I'll be doing that. You two will be slicing and dicing on an actual cadaver next year. Between having to do that and reeking of formaldehyde, I would want no part of it! Besides, Cody, knowing you, I wouldn't be surprised if you haven't already invested in industrial sized drums of Fabreeze..."

Bailey shushed him. "Don't give him any ideas!"

_Boston_

While Yale started back on Monday January 12th, BU wasn't scheduled to start back until that Wednesday. And like they were in New Haven, Maya and Zack were really looking forward to their spring semesters. For Zack, he was looking at another light load in addition to the fact that he was scheduled to graduate in May. But as happy as he was about that, Maya might have been even happier because of something a lot less monumental. For the first semester she could remember, she would only have an eight o'clock class one day a week. No more would she have to wake up at six o'clock every morning so she would be on the subway platform before 7:15 to catch her train. In fact, she was really looking forward to getting to sleep in for the first time in a long time.

Her sole 8:00 AM was SAR AT 405, Clinical Athletic Training II, and it had its lecture on Wednesday mornings from 8:00-10:00 and a discussion section the same morning from 11:00-12:00. On Mondays, she wouldn't start her days until ten AM when she would take SAR HP 560, General Medicine Practicum from 10:00-12:00. On Fridays, at the exact same times, she would be taking SAR AT 506, Evidence-Based Practice: Clinical Applications. Being done by noon on those three days allowed her to continue working those afternoons. Plus, both of her classes on Monday and Friday were only two credit courses that wouldn't have a final exam she had to take.

Of course, by having relatively easy days then, it meant she was going to have very full Tuesdays and Thursdays. Even still, she wouldn't have eight o'clock classes those morning. Instead, those days began at nine o'clock when she started her days with SAR HP 532, Clinical Medicine II, the follow up class to the one that Cody and Bailey had helped her study for the previous semester. Its schedule was a little different as it had a lecture section on Tuesdays from 9:00-10:30 with her smaller discussion/laboratory section on Thursdays from 9:00-10:30. Immediately following that class on both days, Maya had SAR AT 430, Orthopedic Rehabilitation, from 11:00-12:30. It also had a lab section on Tuesday afternoons from 3:00-5:00. Finally, on Thursday afternoons from 3:00-5:00, she would have her sixth and final course of the semester in SAR AT 431, Clinical Reasoning in Rehabilitation.

Six classes was a lot, but Maya wasn't about to complain especially when four of them only met one day a week. Plus, it was the sweetest schedule she had had in her three years at BU. Of course, it would have been nice to have had a schedule quirk like Zack was going to have that semester, but he told her it was something that only happened in the Hospitality Administration Department and because of the professor involved.

The quirk was that Zack basically got two classes for the time of one. From 2:00-5:00 every Thursday afternoon for the first half of the semester, Zack would be taking SHA HF 416, Hospitality Franchising. But halfway through the semester, he would take a final for that class and be done with it. The following week, on the same day and same time, he would begin taking SHA HF 417, Hotel Management Agreements & Negotiation. When finals week came around, Zack would take the final for it. Both were two credit courses, so by the end of the semester, he would essentially be taking a four credit one. And the reason it worked out so well is that both classes were taught by the same professor.

But those weren't to be his only two credit class of the semester as he would also have SHA HF 370, Revenue Management and Technology on Friday mornings from 10:00-12:00. Those three classes would fill up the final hospitality administration electives that he could take. His final two classes of the semester would both be four credit classes and ones he was required to take to graduate with either his bachelor's degree or his minor. The final hospitality administration requirement he had to take was SHA HF 432, Hospitality Leadership, and it would meet on Tuesday afternoons from 2:00-5:00. Every student in the program had to take this class the final semester of their senior year. That left Zack with his final class he needed to complete his business management minor, and it was SMG SM 221, Probabilistic and Statistical Decision Making for Management. It had its lecture sections on Monday and Wednesday afternoons from 2:00-3:30 with discussion/lab sections immediately following them on both days from 3:30-5:00. Zack wasn't particularly happy with how many hours that class was going to take up, but he had already come too far not to take it. Plus, he figured it might help him out in the future studying for his MBA - wherever he chose to do that.

Of course, he still had plenty of time in the mornings to work on Monday through Thursday from 8:00-12:00 to get in sixteen hours a week. And that fact made Maya smile. On the Thursday of their first half week of classes, they were having lunch again on campus, and she couldn't help but tease him.

"Just make sure you're quiet those morning so you don't wake me up. Besides, I did it for you last semester, so I think you can return the favor..." She grinned. "I really think I'm going to like this reversal of fortune this semester..."

Zack just shook his head. "Ha ha...very funny."

"Hey! Four days a week, I'm going to be getting at least an extra hour of sleep than I'm used to getting. Don't think I don't plan on enjoying it!"

He sighed. "This is payback, isn't? I knew I shouldn't have shushed you to keep it down so many mornings. This is going to come back and bite me in the butt. You're never going to let me live that down, are you?"

Maya just smiled at him. "Maybe. But look on the bright side, Babe - on Fridays this semester, we'll be able to have breakfast and ride the subway to class together..."

"Very true." He smiled. "I guess that won't be so bad."

She laughed. "But, you're getting up first those mornings and then waking me up when you're done with the bathroom!"

He just shook his head. "I think Karma is still kicking my butt. I should learn to keep my big mouth shut from now on..."

"Probably. Of course, while our schedules are pretty nice, they're not as nice as having Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays off..."

Zack rolled his eyes. "Tell me about it. The only thing keeping me from melting down like Tapeworm is knowing they'll get theirs again next fall when they start medical school..."

Maya paused. "Speaking of next fall and starting grad school, have you given any further thought about Harvard's acceptance yet?"

He just shook his head. "No, not yet..." He paused. "I mean, it doesn't really make sense for me to yet until I talk to London and Moseby, and London won't get back in town until after next week..."

"Well, maybe you should go ahead and talk to Moseby? If you can get him on your side, I'm sure the two of you can convince London should she hesitate. But, Zack...I really think London's going to be proud of you and tell you to give Harvard a shot..."

Zack just looked at her. He had a pretty good idea London would too...considering she had practically said as much when they talked right before Thanksgiving. Still, he still found himself stuck. It seemed everyone wanted him to go to Harvard's business school...except him. But, seeing the look on Maya's face, he just nodded.

"I'll talk to him tomorrow..."

_New Haven_

On that same Thursday afternoon at Yale, classes had now been back in session for almost a full week now. Well, for Cody and Bailey, their first week of classes would officially be over by three thirty that afternoon. But after Bailey, Cody, Tapeworm and Gertie got out of their anthropology class that morning, they all headed back to Berkeley to grab some lunch in the dining room. And after they had all got their food and found a table to sit down at, Gertie couldn't help but give her former roommate a little ribbing about what had happened in their class that morning.

"You know, Bailey, I don't think I've ever seen you so riled up before like you were in class today..."

Cody mumbled under his breath. "I have..." Of course, that got him an elbow in the ribs from Bailey.

Gertie continued. "I swear, I was almost positive that you and Professor Louis were going to come to blows. You two were having a really heated discussion..."

Bailey just sighed and shook her head. "Well, if you are going to act like an authority on something, I feel like you should at least know what you are talking about. I mean, he kept going on and on about how the legend of Princess Zaria was a big myth. At first, I tried to calmly correct him and tell him that it was very real, but he kept being dismissive of me and basically saying I was full of horse puckey..." She took a deep breath. "If he would have only listened to me, I could have told him exactly how I knew it was real. I mean, I have first hand knowledge that its no myth..."

Cody shuddered. "You can say that again, Sweetie. I remember it very vividly too..." He paused and looked down at his plate. "Huh...fish tacos..." He shook his head and laughed. "What were the odds of that being on the menu today?"

Of course, Gertie and Tapeworm both just gave them a look before he shook his head. "Let me guess...something that happened to you while on the boat?"

"Yeah, in fact, I know it was real because I was possessed by Princess Zaria..." Bailey proceeded to tell them about their stop in South America and how Zaria's spirit had taken over her body and all the things she had made her do. "If it hadn't been for Cody saving me, I shudder to think what could have happened..."

Cody smiled at her. "Well, while your plan to kill Zack is one I've considered numerous times, I'm glad you didn't. That would have been an awkward conversation with Mom trying to explain to her how the woman I loved had murdered my brother..."

She couldn't help but laugh. "Thanks, Sweetie...I think."

"Besides, I much prefer you just the way you are..." He paused and laughed. "Even though you like to keep teasing me about mine, you had your own issues with your voice changing then..."

She teased him. "Yeah, my voice was deeper than yours has ever been..."

Tapeworm decided to change the subject to something more topical. "So, you guys got any big plans for spring break yet? It is our senior year after all. Our last chance to go out with a bang..."

Cody shook his head. "Not really. With us having a week in Hawaii in July and then two weeks in Paris and Majorca in August, neither one of us felt the need to have three big trips in one year. Instead, I think our plan is to spend those two weeks trying to finish up our Biology senior project write ups and began preparing our presentations. I mean, we'd have Mom around to practice on plus Maya owes us a couple of favors."

Bailey nodded. "Plus, we've already scheduled fittings for my wedding dress and Cody's suit with Arturo for the first week we're back in Boston. And Chef Paulo is going to prepare samples of the menu for us to try. So, we do have a full day of final wedding obligations to take care of too."

Cody laughed. "And if the timing is just right, we'll be there in time to see Maddie give birth and help welcome her child to the world."

Tapeworm shook his head. "Okay, that officially makes me feel old now. I knew Maddie was pregnant but to think she's only a couple of months away from being a mom. I still remember when she was a sophomore in high school when we were in the 7th grade..."

"Well, in a bout five or so weeks on Valentine's Day, she's also going to be a bride. We're making a special trip back to Boston for Valentine's Day for her wedding. Bailey is going to be one of her bridesmaids while Zack and I are scheduled to be ushers..." He turned to Bailey and grinned at her. "So, if you see any last minute things you want for our wedding, tell London."

She laughed. "Yeah, I'll get right on that..."

Cody paused. "Though, since we'll be done there by early evening, I may have to call Zack and take him up on his offer..."

Bailey turned to him. "What offer would that be?"

"Well, since we're going to be there for Valentine's Day, he offered to include us with his and Maya's plans for the evening. Seems they've found a place to celebrate it in Boston they think is highly appropriate."

"And where would that be, Sweetie?"

He just smiled. "That, my dear, is going to be a surprise."

"Well, if you think its a good idea, I trust your judgment, Cody..." She turned back to Gertie and Tapeworm. "So, what about you two? Any big plans to send your final semester of undergrad off with a bang?"

Gertie smiled. "We have a few ideas that we're kicking around..."

Tapeworm laughed. "She does. My vote is to head to the S.S. Tipton II to see if its everything you guys made it out to be..."

"Well, if your serious about it, give Zack a call. He might be able to hook you up with a really good deal. And you already know Esteban, so you would get to see him again. Oh, and if you run into a really big man named Kirby, tell him you're friends of ours, and he'll look out for you."

Gertie nodded. "Well, we might just do that. Sure we can't talk you two into coming with us?"

Cody smiled. "While it does sound like fun, I think we should stick with our plan to head back to Boston. We really should try to get our final senior project done as soon as possible. So, you guys go have the times of your lives while absolutely nothing exciting will happen to us..."

_Boston_

The following day was Friday, and Zack and Maya did have breakfast together before heading off to their morning classes. After both finished off their only classes for the day, they met up again to have lunch before Maya had to head off to teach her swim lessons that afternoon. He was hoping she wouldn't remember his promise to go see Moseby that afternoon, but she reminded him of it just before she headed off to the fit&rec center. Figuring he was now stuck, Zack headed straight to the offices of London Inns before he headed home. And making things worse, Moseby's secretary told him he could go right in as Moseby wasn't otherwise busy. So he knocked on the door, and when he did, Moseby looked up him in surprise.

"Zack? What are you doing here today?" He laughed. "Can't get enough of this place so you're coming in on your day off, huh?"

Zack closed the door behind him before taking a seat across from Moseby's desk. "Actually, there is something I needed to talk to both you and London about..."

"Well, she's still out of the country with Todd..."

"I know, but I promised Maya I'd come and talk to you today, so here I am..."

Moseby frowned. "Zack, is everything alright?"

Zack sighed. "Most would say its better than alright, but I don't agree with that assessment."

"What are you talking about?"

"This..." Zack handed his folded acceptance letter still in its envelope to Moseby.

Moseby took it from him, pulled out the letter and began reading it himself. And like Zack had on early New Year's Day, his eyes went wide in shock. "You got accepted to Harvard's business school!"

Zack could only nod. "Yeah...I still have no idea why, but they did. I mean, who would have thunk it, huh?"

Moseby slumped back into his chair and shook his head. "Wow...I have to admit, not me. Well, I knew there was the slightest of chances, but I didn't realistically see this coming..." He paused. "But maybe I should have..."

Zack looked at him incredulously. "Why? Nobody else did...except maybe Maya."

"Come on, Zack. I admit I was a little skeptical at first about how you would respond to the added pressures and workload of college, but from the very beginning, you've been...as you younger people are apt to say 'kicking butt and taking names.' Every semester, whether it be at Beacon Hill or at BU, you've been well above a 3.0. And don't forget that you rocked the GMAT..." He paused and shook his head again. "I can only imagine what you could have done in high school if you had had this same work ethic then that you do now. I know I've said I was proud of you before, but I honestly don't think I've ever been prouder of you than I am right now..."

Zack just looked at him for a second. "You aren't going to get all mushy on me again like you did that one time you made me hall monitor, are you?"

Moseby laughed. "I might. I mean it, Zack...I'm really proud of you. Due to your own hard work and on your own merits, you actually got into Harvard Business School! You should be extremely proud of yourself!"

He sighed. "I guess..."

"You guess? This is a huge honor for you! For your whole family! Just think...next fall, there will be two Martins in grad school at Harvard." He paused and smiled. "Make that three. Bailey will officially be a Martin by then too."

Zack shook his head. "No, you had it right the first time. There will only be two there..."

"What are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about I'm not going!"

Moseby looked at him in confusion. "What in the world do you mean that you're not going?"

"Exactly what I just said! I'm not going! Moseby, I don't want to go to Harvard! I'm perfectly happy to say at BU..."

"Why would you not want to go to Harvard? Its the opportunity of a lifetime! An MBA from there will be like a golden ticket, and the world will be your chocolate factory!" Moseby paused. "Surely you aren't thinking about the cost involved. You know as well as I do that London will back you 100%. And if she is a little hesitant, I'll help you convince her this is the best thing..."

Zack sighed. "That's not what I was worried about..."

"What then? Zack, this is something you have to do! The perks of a degree there will put you in very elite company!"

Zack shrugged. "Maybe...if I was actually able to graduate from there. But I have serious doubts that I would be able to. Moseby, look at me. You've known me for almost ten years now. Remember, I made your life a living hell at the Tipton and on the boat. When have I ever been Harvard material? The answer is never. Cody and Bailey, those two were born to go there. But me? At no time in my life have I ever been ivy league material..."

Moseby was in disbelief. "Of course you are! I mean, if Harvard thought you were good enough to accept you, doesn't that tell you that they think you can handle this?"

"Yeah, well, I know me better than they do. Moseby, it would be like a plane crash. At first, it would be cool to watch and you couldn't look away from it. But in the end, there would be nothing left by destruction and carnage..."

He shook his head. "I don't believe that, and you shouldn't either. And I'm sure everyone else has told you the same thing when you told them you didn't want to go..."

Zack laughed. "Yeah, like I've told anyone else this yet. Mom and Mimi are so proud of me that they might burst. And I think I actually saw looks of respect from my brother and soon to be sister-in-law for the first time in regards to my academic abilities..." He stopped and sighed. "And don't get me started on Maya. I never wanted to apply to Harvard in the first place, but she practically forced me to. I never thought I'd get in, so I thought it was a simple thing to do for her that I would never have to worry about. Well, unfortunately, now, I do. I'm afraid it would break her heart if I told her I didn't want to go."

"Then don't tell her. Just go and give it a shot. If it turns out to be too much for you, you can always transfer out and back to BU. But the Zack Martin I know would never quit before he even tried..."

"Yeah, well, that was the more carefree Zack. The new mature version is a lot more realistic and cautious."

"I don't believe that either. You want to know what I think?"

"I'm all ears..."

Moseby smiled. "I think you've gotten used to the taste of success in regards to your school work. And I believe you've discovered that you really like the feeling that it gives to you. But you're scared that if you try something more difficult and fail, then it will mean everything up until now was all an illusion. Newsflash, Zack, It wasn't! You've busted your hump and done well. You've done better than I could ever have imagined. I think you're afraid of not only letting yourself down if you fail, but your petrified of letting everyone else down too. You want to stay in your comfort zone and play it safe..."

"Well, can you blame me?"

He shook his head. "No, I can't. Actually, I can understand it all too well. Why do you think for so long that I just accepted the abuse I got from Mr. Tipton?"

"Because you're a glutton for punishment?"

Moseby glared at him. "No. I was in a position of respect and high authority, and I wanted to do my best to prove to my boss that I was worthy of it. For the first time in my life, I had acquired a taste for it and found that I liked it. Growing up, I had brothers who were always better at me at various things and a mother who wasn't very supportive of the few things I was good at. So, I was forced to seek my validation elsewhere, and once I got it, I was hell bent on holding on to it. But it took me until a few years ago to realize that I didn't have to take the abuse that came with it to know that I was already success. I realized I had a woman who loved me and friends who cared about me. I realized it was okay to step out of my comfort zone and do something I was scared to do. And I did it. Yeah, I was unemployed for a while..." He held out his hands. "...but look where I am now."

Zack paused. "Yeah, because of London..."

Moseby laughed. "You don't get it, do you? Zack, in the past few years, I've had offers to leave London Inns and go work elsewhere for a lot more money. But I haven't taken those offers because I believe in a little thing called loyalty. I don't need more responsibilities and more money to know I am a success. I already was one. I was happy here and still am. I'm surrounded by people like London and you and Maddie that I consider to be my friends...and yes, I do consider us friends now. But my point is that its okay every once in a while to strike out and walk the tight rope without a net. But the funny thing is you aren't really ever without a net as you'll always have everyone who cares about you there to catch you if you fall." He paused and smiled at Zack. "Now, are you really going to sit there and tell me that you're too afraid to do something that I did? The Zack I know would do it just to defy me..."

"Maybe so, but what I need from you right now is to tell me you won't support me in going to Harvard. I need a good reason to tell everyone that will get them off my back!"

Moseby shook his head. "That, I won't do. Zack, don't do anything hasty here. Take your time and think about it. And don't be afraid to tell everyone else about your fears. I know they would understand..."

Zack shook his head too. "I seriously doubt that, Moseby..."

___To be Continued..._


	19. The St Valentine's Day Massacre

_Episode 19_

_"The St. Valentine's Day Massacre"_

_I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did._

_Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them._

_Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves._

_And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so..._

_New Haven_

The next four weeks seemed to fly by fairly quickly as January eventually gave way to February and Valentine's Day weekend neared. Everyone was getting close to finishing up their first months of their spring semesters and found themselves trying to keep themselves motivated without senioritis kicking in. Well, that wasn't really a problem for a certain duo. Even though they only had actual classes on two days a week, Cody and Bailey were still extremely busy the other three days of the week doing their work for their three 'real' classes. And for Bailey, that meant searching high and low for a copy of the article Cody had given an interview for as well as a trying to get a sworn affidavit from Luis (their tour group leader) that Princess Zaria was indeed real. Naturally, she did have to hold back a smirk when she finally gave all the information she had gathered to her professor to show him how wrong he had been. But Cody did warn her not to cross the line like he had once with his chemistry teacher with the toupee. Seems he learned the hard way teachers don't like to be showed up by their students and not do something about it. Well, except for Tut who who just sigh, shake her head and take it.

But there was a major event for them even before Valentine's Day. On Wednesday, February the 11th, Cody and Bailey officially ended their last experiments for their Biology senior project. All that was left for them to do was to compile and organize their results before writing up their findings and preparing their presentations. So, from that day, they had three and a half weeks until spring break began to get all of their data transferred over to spreadsheets and begin outlining how to present it. Of course, they had to make sure they still found the time to do all of their work for their other classes. But that weekend was going to be a work free weekend as they had to head back to Boston for Maddie and Trevor's wedding.

On the morning of Friday the 13th, Bailey was still sound asleep until she was awoken by the familiar sound of her rooster alarm clock going off at 6:45. Still half asleep, she reached her hand over to hit the snooze button to give herself fifteen more minutes of sleep. After all, she didn't have any classes that day to be up for. Instead of getting up, she instead reached over to pull Cody in closer to her. But when she felt out out for him, she quickly discovered his half of the bed was now empty. Naturally, that alarmed her and caused her to open her eyes and wake up fully. But once she did, she could detect the smell of something good wafting in from the main room of their dorm suite. So, she climbed out of bed, donned her robe and headed out to investigate. And when she walked into the main part of their suite, she saw Cody standing around their small table and chairs trying to organize roses into a vase. Bailey just smiled at the sight before her before clearing her throat.

Immediately, Cody whirled his head around and noticed her standing there. And that caused him to smile. "Happy Valentine's Day, Bails!"

She just shook her head. "That's not until tomorrow..."

"Yeah, I know, but I couldn't risk doing this in the morning. One, we won't be alone then, and two, I have no desire to hear Zack rant and rave and accuse me of trying to one up him yet again on Valentine's Day..."

Bailey laughed. "Alright, I'll let it slide this time. And, I can definitely see him doing just that. I can still remember him complaining about you somehow causing him to blow a whole week's salary on Valentine's Day our senior year in high school."

"Not my fault he found out what I had planned for you and felt the need to try to keep up..." He grinned again. "Now, my dear, if you will, please join me as I have breakfast ready to be served."

Cody pulled out a chair for her and scooted her in once she was seated. He followed that by lifting the cover off of the plate directly in front of her.

"Without a real kitchen, I wasn't able to actually cook you anything, but I think I got all of your favorites - heart shaped pancakes with maple syrup, scrambled eggs a little on the runny side, and turkey bacon extra crispy..."

Bailey smiled up at him. "Sweetie, its perfect! But I do have to ask...how did you pull all of this off this morning? Its not even seven o'clock in the morning yet..."

He grinned. "Because I had my cell phone alarm on vibrate to wake me up at a quarter till six. I pre-ordered breakfast last night, and picked it up as well as your roses this morning while I was out. I was hoping you wouldn't wake up and notice I was gone, but I had left a note on my pillow just in case you did. And when I got back, I saw it was still there and you were still asleep. So..." He held out his hands. "Voila!"

She laughed. "Well, I love it, but I love you even more..." She leaned up and kissed him. "Happy Valentine's Day to you too, Cody Bear. Not that I'm in any hurry to go anywhere right now, but what time do we have to be back in Boston today?"

"We're supposed to join everyone for the rehearsal in the Tipton's big ballroom at 6:00. So, I figure we'll want to be back by 4:00 at the latest so we have time to freshen up and get changed for it."

Bailey nodded. "Yeah, at the very latest 4:00, but I think it would be best if we left here right after lunch today. That way, we avoid the early rush hour traffic in Boston."

"Good call." Cody smiled again. "That gives us about five hours until lunch then. What would you to do until then, my Valentine?"

She paused to think. "You know what? I say we finish up our research on our advanced seminar papers this morning. We're already getting close to being done as it is, so I say we go ahead and do that this morning. We can finish up breakfast, get cleaned up, and then head straight to the library. From there, we can head back over her to the dining hall for lunch before we come back up here to pack..."

Cody just nodded his agreement while trying to hide his disappointment. "Yeah, that would probably be the prudent thing to do..."

Bailey winked at him. "Its seven o'clock now. I figure if we make it over to the library by 9:30, that will give us plenty of time to finish up. Until then, I say we put breakfast in the microwave and heat it up later. I think we should do a little heating up of our own first so we can really build up our appetites..."

Cody just gave her a look before laughing. "Have I mentioned yet how much I love the way you think?"

About one o'clock that afternoon, Bailey and Cody had finished up all of their tasks for the morning and were walking through the lobby of Berkeley North on their way to catch the shuttle over to their car. Bailey was pulling their bag on wheels behind her as Cody held a garment bag holding their dress wear for the rehearsal and rehearsal dinner later on that evening. Fortunately, her bridesmaid dress and his usher's tuxedo were already back in Boston waiting on them. And as they were about to head out the front door, they passed Master Chun standing by the front desk. And when he saw them, he smiled.

"You two heading off for a big Valentine's Day Weekend?"

Bailey just smiled. "Something like that."

He shook his head. "Again, thank you Cody for making me look bad..."

Cody laughed. "Well, I'm trying my best."

"I can see that. Well, you to be careful when you head back. There's talk of a big snow storm potentially hitting the area on late Sunday afternoon."

"We know. We're planning on being back that afternoon well before it hits. I hope you and your wife had a good Valentine's Day too, Master Chun."

At that moment, they saw the university shuttle pull up out front of the dorm, and they ran as fast as they could to make sure they caught it. Not more than fifteen minutes later, Master Chun was still standing at the desk reviewing some paperwork when he felt a tap on his shoulder.

"Excuse me, sir. I was hoping you can help me out here."

He turned and looked at a young man standing before him. "Certainly. What can I do for you?"

"Well, I stopped over at that library place next door, and they checked their newfangled computer directory for me. They told me that a...friend of mine lives here in this building. I was hoping you could help me find her..."

"I'll certainly try. I like to think I know all of the residents here at Berkeley College. What's your friend's name?"

"Bailey...Bailey Pickett."

Master Chun just shook his head. "I do know Bailey pretty well, but unfortunately, you just missed catching her. She and her fiance, Cody, just left out of here not more than fifteen minutes ago for a Valentine's Day weekend. They said they wouldn't be back until Sunday afternoon..."

"Do you know where they were going?"

Master Chun shrugged. "No clue. I didn't ask them because it wasn't any of my business..."

The young man frowned and shook his head. "Great...I came all the way up here from Kettlecorn, and she ain't even here..."

_Boston_

That afternoon, Zack returned back to his suite to enjoy the fact that he was completely done for the afternoon. He definitely remembered what Moseby had said to him several weeks before, and he had actually considered talking to Maya about it. But every time he almost did, he ended up chickening out. By that Friday, he figured it wouldn't hurt to put it off until after that weekend. After all, there was no need to potentially get Maya ticked off at him on Valentine's Day, was there?

So, the first thing he did as soon as he got home was to call the dinner cruise company to make sure everything was still a go for the following evening. After getting the reassurance that there wouldn't be any potential bad weather until Sunday, Zack was relieved. He had no desire to go deal with the same worries he had the year before. Of course, the company did ask if either of his parties of two would mind holding off and take the 8:30 cruise instead of the 8:00 PM one he had booked. Zack told them he didn't think so but would call them back if something came up. Once he finished his phone call, he began looking around the suite trying to figure out how to spend his afternoon. But instead of goofing off and playing some video games, he was decided to do the prudent and responsible thing and do some of his homework. A couple of hours later, he was still sitting at the kitchen table hard at work with the front door to the suite swung open. Zack looked up to see Cody walked in holding a garment back and pulling another bag behind him.

"Well, well...the prodigal twin returns..."

When Cody saw his brother sitting there being all studious, he just grinned.

"Well, well...big brother somehow manages to get himself accepted into Harvard's business school and is now hard at work actually studying on a Friday afternoon. I believe you used to have a word for people like that – nerd!"

Zack could only roll his eyes. "Yeah, whatever..." He decided to change the subject. "Where's the wife?"

"Oh, London had left a note for Bailey downstairs to head up to her penthouse as soon as she got in. I think Arturo wants to do a final fitting for Maddie's wedding dress and the bridesmaid dresses before the rehearsal. So, she stuck me with our bags while she headed on upstairs. I'm guessing Arturo waited to the last minute to do the final fittings so there wasn't a chance Maddie would get any bigger in 24 hours..."

He winced. "I hope that's enough time. You haven't seen Maddie in over a month. She's gotten...quite large in that time. With her still planning on wearing white tomorrow, you might get images of the Stay Puft Marshmellow Man in your head when you see her..."

"Really?" Cody paused and laughed. "Or maybe someone will yell out 'Thar She Blows!', and I'll be looking around for Ishmael, Starbuck, Queegueg and Captain Ahab?"

Zack just gave him a look. "Huh?"

"You know...Moby Dick...the great white whale made famous by Herman Melville's epic novel?"

He rolled his eyes. "And you called me a nerd?"

Cody laughed again. "Anyways, I'm just glad Bailey and I won't have to worry about anything like that happening to us in a few months..."

Zack gave his brother a look. "You better hope not. After some of the things Maya told me about living with you guys last summer, you better go knock on wood just to be on the safe side..."

"Get your mind out of the gutter, Zack. No offense to Maddie, but I'm glad our wedding wasn't thrown together in less than three months...

"Well, Broseph, you should consider yourself extremely lucky. But not for that reason. I talking about the fact that you've actually found someone willing to marry you. I still say Bailey needs to get a cat scan to see if there is something wrong with her..." He shook his head. "Oh well, I guess there is the chance I actually will be an uncle someday. And for another thing, you're also lucky that we aren't going to be able to give you a real bachelor party because of everyone's schedules."

Cody shrugged. "No big deal to me."

Zack grinned. "Oh, you're not off the hook yet! All of us guys have been talking, and we're all going take you out for your last day of freedom that Friday before the 4th of July. I think you'll really enjoy what we have cooked up for you..."

"Zack..."

"Don't worry. I got the list you sent me of things that are strictly forbidden, and we've found a way to work around it. So, just be prepared for a long and full day that day. And just because I'm such a nice guy, I'll tell you that London is letting us have the Tipton box suite at Fenway for that game that night. And Broseph, Tapeworm has told me you aren't that big of a drinker, but that will be no excuse that day..."

Cody sighed. "I'm already getting a very bad feeling about this..."

"And no trying to order non-alcoholic beer for yourself and trying to pass it off as a regular one. I know that's something you'd try to do!"

Cody shook his head and sighed. "You know, if you give the same kind of effort to HBS next year that you have to my bachelor party, you'll end up at the top of your class..."

Zack paused and figured this might be the perfect opportunity to finally tell someone other than Moseby about his desire not to go to Harvard. "Well, that would be pretty impossible to do since I'm not going to Harvard next year. I fully plan on staying at BU!"

Cody dropped the bags on the couch and gave his brother a look. "Excuse me? What did you just say?"

"You heard me. I'm telling Harvard no..." He paused. "...you know, once I find a good way to break that news to Maya, Mom and Mimi..."

Cody looked at his brother incredulously. "Are you insane?"

Zack sighed. "Why do people keep asking me that? Moseby said the exact same thing..."

"Because maybe its true! Zack, you've been accepted to the best business school in the country! Can't you see how big of an opportunity this is for you? Why in the world would you not go?"

"Exactly for that very reason! Codester, you and Bailey may be ivy league material, but I'm not! I know my own limitations, and I know I wouldn't last a semester there!"

"Says who?"

He rubbed his eyes. "Says me!"

Cody paused before shaking his head. For as long as he could remember, directly arguing with Zack never seemed to work out. So, he figured he'd try a different method to try to get through to him. "I never thought I'd ever see this day. I remember growing up thinking that my older brother wasn't afraid of anything...well, except the ghost of Suite 613...and zombies. But now, that same brother is now afraid of failing at something. I wish the twelve year old version of yourself was here to hear you say that! He'd kick your butt!"

Zack yelled back at him. "So, now its wrong that I've grown up and stopped putting myself into positions were I do stupid things?"

"You may have grown up and matured, but it hasn't stopped you from stupid things. Like for example refusing to take advantage of the opportunity of a life time..." He sighed. "You never were afraid of failing at things before. What happened to my brother who failed to graduate junior high and had to go to summer school?"

"Its like I told you before, he grew up. Besides, you of all people have no right to give me hell about this. You yourself were about to turn down Harvard!"

Cody paused. "You know that our situations are completely different. If you want a similar one, imagine if I told you I had decided to go to UMass's medical school instead of Harvard's because I thought it would be too hard."

Zack shook his head and laughed. "Uh uh. That won't work here, Broseph. While those situations may be more similar, you and I are two totally different people. You've been afraid of a lot of things in the past, but never of an academic challenge!"

Cody just looked at his brother before nodding. "You're right. You always were the braver of the two of us growing up..." He paused again. "I'm just trying to figure out now when that switched. I know I've gradually built up my courage over the years. I mean, I stuck my neck out on the line to win Bailey over and then save her when she got possessed by Princess Zaria. And then, I saved all of your lives when you got stuck on the submarine while you wussed out a female wrestler. And then, it was me who practically had to drag you back to save all of those twins at the Gemini Project. So, I'm guessing I passed you up sometime in high school..." He shook his head before shrugging. "I guess it doesn't really matter now though. Maybe you should have been the cowardly lion in Bailey's dream instead of Woody..."

"Huh?"

"It doesn't matter. This is a sad day to find out the brother I used to look up to is nothing but a pansy and a wuss now..."

Zack glared at him. "Don't forget that I can still whip your butt, Baby Brother!"

"Can you? I kind of seriously doubt it. I mean...if you're afraid of a school, why should I be scared of you? Now that I think about it, you probably wouldn't do anything because you'd get scared of me fighting back and whipping your butt..."

"You think so, huh? Well, lets step outside and I'll prove to you why you should be afraid of what I can do to you!"

Cody shook his head. "No, thank you. I'd prefer that you prove that you aren't afraid of Harvard. Prove to yourself that Harvard isn't more than you can handle. The brother I grew up with wouldn't be afraid of trying it. I mean...what's the worst that can happen?"

Zack was growing angrier. "How about me flunking out?"

"Zack, if you gave it your best effort and flunked out, no one would ever hold that against you. But not to even try? That's something you would regret for the rest of your life. That's the thing about life. Its what you make of it. You can't be afraid to try. If you don't, what's the point of even living then? Someone very wise once told me it was an adventure. But to begin that adventure, you can't be afraid to take the first step..."

And with that, Cody picked up the bags of the couch to take them into the bedroom so he could hang up the garment bag. While he was doing that, Zack stormed out of the suite and pulled out his cell phone to make a call. The rest of that afternoon and evening, Zack was still so angry at Cody that he made a conscious effort to keep from talking or being around him as much as possible. Naturally, as they were ushers for the wedding, that proved to be a little difficult, but he managed it. Even at the rehearsal dinner, he made sure that he and Maya sat across the room from Cody and Bailey. He even managed to avoid saying anything to him as everyone returned to the suite to call it a night. But as they were getting ready for bed, Bailey had noticed something was amiss and had some questions for Cody.

"Okay...what's going on between you and Zack? I'm not blind, Sweetie. It was obvious to at least me that he was purposely avoiding and not talking to you all night. Did something happen between the two of you that I don't know about?"

Cody sighed and filled her in on the conversation/argument that he and Zack had had earlier that afternoon. When he was done, Bailey just looked at him in shock and surprise.

"He's really going to turn down Harvard just because he thinks he might fail?"

He nodded. "Yeah. And he even brought up the fact that I almost turned them down too..."

She shook her head. "That's not the same thing at at all! You had a valid reason for thinking about going elsewhere. He doesn't."

"I tried to tell him the exact same thing, but he wasn't listening to me..." He sighed again. "Looks like my attempt at tough love didn't work out so well..."

Bailey pulled him in for a hug. "Don't blame yourself. The only thing else you could have done would have been to literally give him a kick in the butt. He seriously needs one if he's being that stupid..." She paused. "Maybe its just because of the way you and me are wired, but that seems incomprehensible to me. I mean...I dared to leave behind everything I ever knew to head to the boat, and you fought with everything you had to get in to Yale. We both saw the educational opportunities of a lifetime and didn't let anything get in our ways from obtaining them..."

Cody squeezed her close to him even tighter. "I know. But Zack can be just as stubborn as I am, and we both know how stubborn I can be. It took a lot to make me realizing how stupid I had been about us our senior year. He's going to need something major to happen to him that will force him to realize that he's wrong about this..."

_The Large Tipton Ballroom_

The next afternoon, everyone celebrated the wedding of Maddie and Trevor. The actual ceremony itself had been held at Maddie's family's church, the Cathedral of Holy Cross. And for those in attendance who had never been to a Catholic wedding before, they had been in for quite the surprise and were worn out by the end of it. Of course, everything went off with a hitch, and Maddie and Trevor were now officially husband and wife. London had gone all out, and the large ballroom at the Tipton was decorated exquisitely for the reception. Everyone gathered as the usual reception festivities began. And even though they had been ushers together, Zack had still found a way to get by without saying a single word to his brother, and it looked like he was going to continue on with that same approach at the reception. Whenever Cody and Bailey would be on one side of the ballroom, Zack would steer Maya over to the other one. Cody and Bailey knew what he was doing, but they refused to allow him to ruin Maddie's reception. And at one point, Maddie slipped away from her guests to sit next to Cody and Bailey at their table.

She smiled at them. "Well, I guess you two are next to go through all of this. Here's a little bit of advice, Bailey - be thankful that your wedding dress won't have any elastic in it!"

Bailey laughed. "Well, I don't think it will, but I won't know for sure until I actually try it on for the first time in a few weeks..."

"And another thing, I commend you for having everyone go barefoot. My feet are killing me in these heels!"

Cody grinned. "Well, to be fair, Maddie, our wedding won't be a Catholic one. There won't be the constant standing up and sitting down like yours had. I'm sure its a very nice denomination, but after today, I'm glad neither Bailey nor I are Catholic..."

Maddie laughed. "Yeah, Catholic weddings to tend to drag on and on, don't they?"

"You can say that again. I'm pretty sure ours won't even last half as long as yours did..."

Bailey couldn't help but to roll her eyes. "Don't listen to him, Maddie. Cody and I decided to write our own vows, so knowing Cody, ours could end up lasting twice as long as yours. I'm seriously considering giving him a time limit that he has to get out whatever it is he's going to say. I mean, I'd rather not still be standing there when the tide comes in..."

He just gave her a look. "So, its a bad thing that I want to fully express to all of our family and friends just how much I love you?"

She smiled at him. "No, not at all. But lets be a little realistic here, Sweetie...you can be a little...verbose at times."

"You act like that's a bad thing!"

Maddie laughed again. "All I know is I can't wait to see how you handle this. You know, Bailey, you could even pull an Oscars and have the string quartet begin playing if he begins to drone on and on. You just need to arrange a signal to give them..."

Bailey laughed too. "Hmmm...you know, Maddie, I think you may be on to something there..."

Cody just sighed. "Great..."

She elbowed him. "I'm just teasing you, Cody. I would never do that do you - unless you had been going on for a real long time with no indication that you were close to wrapping it up." She turned back to Maddie. "Changing the subject, you've got to be pretty excited these days for another reason. What are you now? About five weeks away from your due date?"

She nodded. "Yeah, I'm due a few days after St. Patrick's Day. I'm not sure who is more eager for it to finally come to an end – me or Trevor..."

"Why do you say that?"

"Oh, I've loved carrying our child...especially since Trevor's been back, but I'm tired of being as big as a whale. I miss seeing my feet when I stand up and not crying at those stupid telephone company commercials. And I know Trevor is getting tired of my hormonal mood swings and my late night cravings. He said he and the guy at the 24 hour Dunkin Donuts near our place are now on a first name basis."

Bailey winced. "Wow...I'm sorry to hear all of that..."

Cody nodded. "Me too. I now have a better idea of what I have to look forward to in a few years..." He paused and grinned. "Maybe its a good thing that our new place has a Dunkin' Donuts right down the street from it. That way, I won't have to drive there. And if the guy there will give me a number to call, I can call in whatever Bailey wants as I walk there and have it ready to be picked up when I get there. As for mood swings, well...thankfully our place will have an exercise room for me to escape to for a little while..."

She just turned and gave him a look. "Cody!"

He laughed. "Hey...just teasing your right back, Sweetie."

Maddie laughed. "Something tells me that when its time for you two to have your first child that its going to be fun to watch...from a distance. All I know you two better hurry up and get through medical school. My child is going to need his or her pediatrician..."

"Still haven't found out what you're having yet, huh?"

"Nope. And I don't want to know. I've made it this long without knowing, so..."

"Well, if you want a pediatrician, that would be Bailey. I still have no clue what I want to specialize in yet..."

Maddie laughed again. "I still think you should be an obstetrician. You know, you could deliver them and then Bailey could treat them once they are born. You two could make quite the one-two punch..." She looked around and sighed. "Alright, as much fun as this has been, I guess I should mingle around some more. Plus, this little guy or gal is sitting on my bladder right now. You'll see how much fun that is too in a few years. See you two later." She paused. "I guess when you guys come back for spring break in a few weeks."

The rest of the reception continued on, and like they had planned, Maddie and Trevor made their exit from the reception by six o'clock that evening so that all of their guests could still have their own Valentine's Day plans that evening. But before they did, they did do the timeworn tradition of tossing the bouquet and garter. All the single men and women were supposed to gather in the middle of the dance floor, but Cody and Bailey declined to participate as they didn't feel it was appropriate. While they were technically still single, they felt they were close enough to being married not to qualify. When the bouquet was tossed, London boxed everyone else out for it and came away with it. She began jumping up and down in excitement as Todd just shook his head and smiled. But the real surprise was when Trevor shot the garter straight up and it landed on Zack's shoulder without him trying to make a play for it. Rather, he looked at it in horror as Maya and Carey both teased him about it.

Once Trevor and Maddie made their departure, Cody and Bailey both stuck around to help clean up a little, and it was close to seven by the time they got back upstairs to the suite. Fortunately, Maddie had chose bridesmaid dresses that weren't hideous and could be worn for other occasions. So, both didn't need to change clothes before heading back out that evening. But when they got to the suite, Cody found a envelope with his name on it. Opening it up, he found their two tickets with a note from Zack saying he had switched their dinner cruise to one starting at 8:30 while Zack and Maya would still be going on the 8:00 one.

Cody just sighed. "Looks like he's not going to get over being ticked at me for a while then..."

_The Dinner Cruise_

Zack made sure he and Maya left the reception as soon as Maddie and Trevor had. He had wanted to immediately leave the hotel, but Maya had said she needed to head upstairs to freshen up some. Reluctantly, he agreed, but he realized that he could just leave Cody and Bailey's tickets up there. That way, he wouldn't have to give them to his mother and come up with an excuse as to why he just didn't give them directly to them. Fortunately, Maya was ready to go rather quickly, and they made their way over to the pier on the St. Charles river. After being seated at there table, Zack took a deep breath as he and Maya took the opportunity to enjoy the view from the window next to their table.

"So much better weather than last year. I don't think we have to worry about the river freezing around us this year..."

Zack laughed. "Yeah, that's definitely a major perk."

Maya smiled at him. "Well, this has certainly been a very full and interesting Valentine's Day. Even though the ceremony seemed like it was never going to end, it was very beautiful. And Maddie seemed to be practically glowing..."

"Yeah, I'm just glad we got through it without her going into labor. For some reason, I could have seen something like that happening to all of us..."

She laughed. "You know, I can too..." She paused and decided to tease him. "Of course, we did get a brief moment of comedy when the garter landed on your shoulder. I thought you were going to freak out there for a minute..."

He shook his head. "I was just caught off guard. I was actually checking the time to make sure we weren't going to be late for here when I felt something land on the shoulder. You're the physics expert from this summer, how did that happen exactly?"

"Like I remember any of that now..." She kept teasing him though. "But maybe the same thing will happen to you at Cody and Bailey's wedding this summer? If it happens twice, I think somebody is trying to tell you something..."

"I'll just threaten to kill him if he aims it at me..."

Maya began laughing. "Well, maybe then I'll be able to get better positioning on London then too. With the way she boxed out, she could teach Amare and Carmelo a thing or two about rebounding..."

"No thank you. Even though they won on Christmas, the Celtics in full rebuilding mode now. I don't want the Knicks to have any more advantages for you to taunt me with. Its bad enough that the Heat, Bulls, and Pacers are all still better as well as the New Jersey/Brooklyn Nets..." Zack laughed too. "Besides, London is tougher than she looks. You remember Bailey saying that London knows Shoe Jitsu? Well, she can actually throw one of her shoes as a weapon..."

"Really? You mean like it _Austin Powers_"

"Exactly! And if she has high heels on, that could actually cause some real damage..."

"Well, I hope she and Todd are having a wonderful evening out tonight too. I bet there going somewhere really nice."

"You could say that. They're flying out to Vegas..."

"Wow..." Maya paused. "You know, I kind of thought that Cody and Bailey might have joined us out tonight. With them being in town for the weekend, I figured this would be right up their alley too..."

Zack let out a nervous laugh. "Oh...ummm...I think they made other plans for tonight. Not sure what though because I...ummm...didn't get a chance to talk to them at the reception."

Maya paused again and frowned. "You know, now that you mention it, I didn't either. It seemed like they were always on the other side of the room. I wonder what was up with that?" She paused again as she kept thinking. "Now that I think about it, it seems like we've hardly seen them at all since they've been here for the weekend. I think I spoke to Bailey for a few minutes at the rehearsal dinner, but that's it..."

He grabbed her hands. "Maya...Babe...Its Valentine's Day. I'd much rather spending our time focusing on you and me. No offense, but thinking about my brother doesn't exactly set a romantic mood for me..."

She smiled. "Fair enough. And since we have a few minutes before our dinner gets here, lets go dance. I love this song..."

_The Suite on the 23rd Floor_

That night, Zack and Maya decided to go do some dancing and then hit a midnight showing of the _Sex and the City_ movie. Normally, Zack would rather have slit his wrists than watch that movie, but he figured if he could suffer through it, the odds of them running into Cody and Bailey that evening or the next morning would be greatly diminished. And it seemed like he was right. The next morning, Cody and Bailey woke up early so they could begin gathering their things to head back to New Haven. Since they had some time, they decided to head out for breakfast. But when they were walking back to the Tipton, they noticed the clouds were looking rather ominous. Realizing the bad weather might be getting there sooner than forecasted, they hurried back to the hotel so they could get on the road as soon as possible. Cody took their bags down to the car while Bailey did the one last check to make sure they hadn't forgotten anything. And once she was sure they hadn't, she was about to head down to join him at the car. But before she could exit the suite, the door to Zack and Maya's bedroom opened and Maya walked out yawning.

"You two heading back so soon?"

Bailey nodded. "Yeah, when we went out for breakfast, we noticed the clouds. Looked to us that the storm that is supposed to hit this afternoon may be getting here sooner than we thought. So, we're hoping if we leave now, we'll miss as much of it as we can."

"Probably a good idea. Well, it was good seeing you two again. I just wish we had had more time to hang out this weekend though."

"Well, we'll be back in three weeks for spring break, but I'm pretty sure the reason we didn't hang out that much this weekend was because of Zack being so angry at Cody."

Maya frowned. "Why is he angry at Cody?"

Bailey just raised her eyebrows in surprise. "He didn't tell you?"

"Uh uh...what happened?"

"Well, Cody basically called Zack a coward because he said he was going to turn down Harvard Business School because he thought he would fail at it..."

Maya's eyes went wide. "He did what?"

Bailey paused and tried to cover for Cody. "Well, Cody was just trying to use a little tough love on him to try to get him to change his mind..."

She cut her off. "No, not that! Did you just say that Zack said he was turning down Harvard?"

Bailey swallowed as she realized she had once again said something she probably shouldn't have. "You didn't know that either?"

"Uh uh, I had no idea that he was going to do that..." Maya shook her head and took a deep breath. "Looks like Zack and I need to have a little talk as soon as he wakes up..."

Not wanting to be there for that, Bailey made a hasty exit. "Good luck. I hate to drop a bomb on you like that and run, but I really need to get going so we can stay ahead of the weather. See you guys in a few weeks...I hope."

A couple of hours later, Zack finally woke up himself after sleeping in late that Sunday morning. And after using the bathroom, he walked out in to the main part of the suite. And that's when he noticed Maya sitting on the couch staring at him with her arms crossed and a scowl on her face.

"You okay, Babe?"

She looked up at him. "No, I'm not. In fact...I'm furious!"

Zack paused trying to think of anything he might have done to have caused that. "About what?"

Maya glared at him hard. "About the fact that I had to find out from Bailey that you're turning down Harvard! You and I need to talk now!"

_New Haven_

About that same time, on Yale's campus, Cody and Bailey unlocked the door to their dorm room and carried their bags back inside. Both were grateful that they have avoided any bad weather on the drive back. Rather, just as the shuttle dropped them off right in front of Berkeley, snow began to fall on them. And as it did, both just looked at the other in relief. But, they smiled too as they realized they had nowhere they had to be the rest of the day. So, once they got back to their room and hung up their dress clothes, they both slumped back on to the futon to relax.

"Well, looks like we're probably going to be stuck inside for the rest of the day..."

Cody grinned at her. "You act like that's a bad thing..."

Bailey smiled back at him. "I never said that. But I do think I quiet afternoon alone sounds really good right now."

"Sounds good to me too." He checked his watch. "Tell you what. If you don't mind unpacking the rest of our bags, I'll head down the street to that Chinese take out place we both like. When I get back, we can channel surf and see if there's anything on as we eat lunch..." He grinned again. "...and then see what else we want to do afterwards..."

"Sounds perfect to me, Sweetie."

"You want your usual?"

She nodded. "Yeah, but get me an extra egg roll too."

He leaned in and kissed her cheek. "Bails, I already factored in an extra one as part of your usual. And two fortune cookies too, right?"

She smiled. "You got it. You know me so well..."

"Darn right I do! Okay, I'll call it in as I walk, so I should be back in a little bit."

"Hurry back."

Once Cody donned his winter coat again and headed out, Bailey finished unpacking their bags. When she finished, she smiled as she thought of something. Cody might have surprised her on Friday morning, but she had a surprise for him that afternoon. And like for his birthday, she had a Valentine's Day gift for him that technically wasn't for him. She slipped it on, and was admiring how it looked in their mirror, when she heard a knock at the door.

"Wow...that was fast. They must have had it ready for him to pick up as soon as he got there. The weather must be slowing down their business today..."

So, she donned her big fluffy robe to hide her present for Cody until later and walked out to their door. She checked the peephole out of habit, but the person outside had dark hair. So, it wasn't Cody, and it didn't look like anyone else she thought it could be either. Cracking the door, she stuck her head out to see who it was. But when she saw who was standing there, she rolled her eyes, shook her head and sighed.

"Moose? What are you doing here?"

___To be Continued..._

**AN: Happy 4th of July to everyone! Hope most of you aren't in a severe heat wave where the local government has banned fireworks due to the fear of them setting everything on fire. Anyways, its good to have a day off again. And, it was nice to see I got my first hate review in a long time. I had almost forgotten what one felt like. But, its seems the band of abysmal hacks is back being even more pathetic than ever. They actually asked how I write so much with still being in law school. I guess they weren't paying attention to my story When Two Worlds Collide when I mentioned graduating and taking the bar. Heck, it was last June that I did take that test. But, I guess anything they can do to try to bash me with fits their agenda. I hear rumors they are trying to post their crap stories again. I would strongly encourage everyone to avoid them. They are best used to line the bottom of a birdcage with. Oh well, again, Happy 4th of July! lol**


	20. A Departure and an Arrival

_Episode 20_

_"A Departure and an Arrival"_

_I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did._

_Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them._

_Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves._

_And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so..._

_Boston_

Zack stopped dead in his tracks as he realized the cat was now officially out of the bag about him wanting to turn down Harvard, and he slumped his shoulders in resignation. After how well their Valentine's Day evening had gone the night before, this was the last thing he had been expecting or hoping for that morning. And simultaneously, he was even more upset at his brother for telling his soon to be sister-in-law who seemingly had told Maya before he could while at the same time, also wishing Cody was there so there would be a witness in case Maya ended up killing him. And that was a real possibility as Zack could tell from the look on her face that she was not happy and that he was in a lot of trouble. And its not that he hadn't planned on telling Maya about this...eventually, but he had still been trying to figure out just the right way to break it to her. But all of that seemed like a moot point now. So, he decided to see if he could deal with her wrath while somehow getting her to understand his reasoning for wanting to turn down Harvard's business school. So, as delicately as he could, he walked over and sat down next to her.

"Maya, if you'll give me a chance, I can explain..."

She just gave him another look and cut him off. "Alright, explain then! I'm listening, so let's hear it! And this better be good, Zack! Do you have any idea how it feels knowing I had to hear this from Bailey instead of you?"

Upon hearing her scathing words, he winced. "Look, I really was planning on telling you all about it..."

Maya interrupted him again. "Yeah? When?"

Zack decided to be honest. "As soon as I could figure out a way to do it that would avoid you being mad at me...you know, kind of like you are now..."

She shook her head and exhaled. "So, am I the last person to know that you're planning on turning down Harvard?"

He shook his head. "No, no, no! The only people I've actually told so far are Moseby and Cody. Since Bailey knows too, I'm assuming Cody told her."

Maya smirked at him. "Maybe because he actually tells things to his girlfriend?"

"Trust me, I was going to tell you. Really, I was..." He sighed. "...but after the big deal you made about me applying there and then the look of pride I saw on your face when I actually got in, I didn't know how. I never wanted to apply to Harvard in the first place, and if you'll remember, it was you who threatened to kick my butt if I didn't..."

She just just looked at him for a moment before sighing herself. "Okay, maybe I did do that, but I just wanted the best for you. I wanted you to try to realize the potential I know you have. So, yeah, maybe I did go a little overboard, but its still no reason for you not to tell me about the decision you had made. Zack, we're supposed to be a team here!"

"I know..." He paused again. "...help me out here, what would have been the best way of telling you I didn't want to go to Harvard after I knew how proud of me you were? I didn't want to see you disappointed or break your heart..."

Maya shook her head again. "It would have disappointed me more for you to do something you didn't want to do because you thought it would make me happy..."

"But you were so excited about me getting in to Harvard. The only reason I applied was to make you happy..."

"Zack, I was excited for you. I was excited that you had worked so hard and that a school like Harvard had finally noticed it too..."

That confused him. "But BU already had noticed and accepted me."

"Yeah, they had, but Zack, there is a big difference between the prestige of a school like Harvard and a school like BU. Whether it fair or not, the name Harvard carries with it a lot more weight. It would open doors for you that BU couldn't..."

He sighed again. "I know...trust me, I know. Moseby and Cody both kept trying to hammer that point into my brain already..."

"Because they're right! And I'm guessing you must have told Cody that you thought you would flunk out of Harvard. Why in the world would you think you would do that?"

Zack just looked at her. "Seriously? Remember who we are talking about here. When have I ever given anyone the impression that I could hack it at an ivy league school. That's always been more of Cody's thing, and you've even said yourself that Cody and I are nothing alike!"

Maya paused to think. "That's not what I meant, and you know it. I meant that you two are complete opposites when it comes to your personalities. And as for you 'hacking' it at an ivy league school, I have one name for you to remember - former President George W. Bush. I mean, we all know that he's an idiot, but he got into Harvard Business School too. Yeah, he graduated in the bottom 10% of his class from there, but how did that end up working out for him? He owned the Texas Rangers, was governor of Texas and then President of the United States..."

He shook his head. "Yeah, he did pretty well for himself...considering who his father was. My Dad is cool and all, but he doesn't have quite the same pull..."

"Well, I did some research myself once you got in. I have a few more names for you. How about Robert Kraft, the owner of your beloved Patriots. He graduated from there. So did Mitt Romney. Yeah, he may have failed in 2012, but he still made it through there. But think about it, what does the person who graduates last in their class there get?"

Zack shrugged. "I don't know...what? Mock and ridicule?"

She rolled her eyes. "No, they get an MBA from Harvard..."

"Well, yeah, but how would that look on a resume? Wouldn't graduating middle of the pack at BU look better?"

"Why do you care how it looks on a resume? Its not like you'll be searching for a job when you got out. In case you've forgotten, you've already got one. A really good one. One that people who graduate at the top of the class at Harvard would love to get once they graduated. So, in that regard, you're already ahead of everyone there before you even start..."

He paused. "Maybe..."

She shook her head. "Anyways, we're getting off subject here. Why are you so sure you would fail?"

"Think about it, Maya. They accept the best of the best there..."

She nodded. "Yeah...and they accepted you which means they include you in that lofty category."

Zack was getting exasperated. "What if I can't handle the workload? What if I get so completely lost around all those brainiacs?"

Maya paused again. "Zack, do you really think the information they teach at Harvard Business School is any different than what they teach at BU's graduate school? I don't. I'm willing to bet its pretty much all the same stuff..."

"Maybe, but everyone there will be so much smarter than I am..."

"You don't know that for sure. And while I completely disagree, I want you to think about it this way. Odds are there will be people there who will be all cocky because they actually got accepted to Harvard. They'll think that their...well...you know...don't stink. And they'll be in for a rude awakening. Meanwhile, you just have to keep doing what you have been doing. If you work hard and give it everything you have, no one can ask anything more of you, Zack. And if you do that, I think you'll end up surprising yourself..."

He sighed again. "Maya, I don't know..."

She stopped to think of a new tactic he might be more receptive too. "Alright, lets think about this in another way that you might like better. Lets say four years ago, you were offered a basketball scholarship to someplace like Kentucky, North Carolina or Duke. Would you turn it down because you would have to work hard and earn your playing time? I mean there, you would be competing against some of the best players in the country to even see the court. Or would you end up going to some small school in the Patriot League because it would be easier for you to be the man there?"

"Well..."

"Would you settle for a team that has virtually no chance to win it all or would you bust your hump and prove you deserved to play for one of the big boys?"

Zack just looked at her. "I'd prove I belonged to play with the the best. I'd..." He paused as he realized what she had just done. "Oh..."

Maya smiled. "Exactly! And if we have a son someday, would you tell him to strive to be the best he can be or would you tell him to settle?"

He sighed and shook his head. "I hate it when you use logic on me..."

She laughed. "So...what I've said is finally starting to sink in?"

"Maybe a little bit..."

Maya laughed again. "I'm glad that I could succeed where Moseby and Cody failed..."

Zack had a small smile form on his face. "Well, you're a lot cuter than they are..."

"So does that mean you'll give Harvard a shot?"

"It means I'll actually consider it again...for real this time...but, beyond that, no promises."

"That's all I want from you, Zack. I just want you to be happy. If you decide Harvard isn't right for you, I'll support your decision one hundred percent. But if you do decide to give it a shot, I'll be right there by your side encouraging and helping you in any way I can..."

He smiled. "Thanks, Babe. Sorry for not coming to you sooner about how I was feeling..."

She smiled back at him. "I guess I can understand why you didn't...but just don't ever let it happen again!"

_New Haven_

Bailey just stood there and continued to roll her eyes. On that day of all days, what had she done to deserve to have Moose standing there at her door - a couple of thousand miles away from Kettlecorn where he should have been? Having to deal with him while she went back to the farm for Christmas or one of the holiday weekends was one thing, but wasn't her home at college supposed to be a Moose free zone? She hadn't even seen him since the Christmas before last, and she was really beginning to enjoy not having to deal with him any longer. In fact, after she and Cody had seen Barbara in Boston over the Fourth of July, Bailey had hoped they would forever be done with their middle school exes. But with him standing there, it didn't look like she wasn't going to get that wish. Of course, that made her pause and wonder what it was about holidays that brought them back into their lives. Shaking her head, she turned her attention back to Moose who was looking at her expectantly. So, she just sighed again.

"Moose, what are you doing here?"

He just stood there for a moment once he realized he wasn't going to get the warm welcome he had been hoping for. Once he composed himself, he finally spoke up. "I came here because there is something I reckon you and I need to talk about..."

Bailey shook her head again as she was getting a bad feeling about this. "And what would that be?" She paused and shook her head again. "Nevermind. I don't really care what you want to talk about. You shouldn't be here, and there is nothing important enough for you to have come all this way. Why don't you just turn around and go home?"

Moose looked at her imploringly. "Please? I left Thursday morning and drove straight through so I could try to talk to you on Friday. But when I got here, some foreign looking feller downstairs told me that you and the little feller had just left for the weekend. He didn't know where you two had gone, so I've been staying over at the YMCA the past couple of days waiting for you to get back..."

"I don't see why I should. As far as I'm concerned, we have nothing to discuss."

"Just give me a few minutes. After that, if you tell me to leave, then I will..."

She paused. "If I let you in for a few minutes, will you promise never to bother me or Cody ever again afterwards?"

He sighed. "Whatever it takes to get you to talk to me..."

Bailey stood there for a few seconds before shaking her head. "Fine. Give me a few minutes first..." And with that, she closed the door and locked it. Realizing what she was wearing, she headed back into the bedroom and put on a pair of pajama pants and one of Cody's long sleeved t-shirts. Putting her robe back on, she headed back out in the main room of the dorm room when she paused again. Bailey walked over to their coffee table and pulled out the can of mace from its drawer just to be on the safe side. Once she had it in her possession, she walked over and opened the door again.

"Alright, you can come in, but you only get five minutes..."

Moose nodded. "Fine. I..." He paused when he noticed the can she was holding in her hands. "What's that?"

"Its called mace. If you try anything funny, I'll spray it in your eyes. It stings worse and will make you cry more than getting sprayed by a skunk will. And in some ways, I'm kind of hoping you try something stupid. I've been taking self defense classes with my friend Gertie. The last time I kicked a guy in the knee, I didn't hear a crunching sound. I'd love another opportunity to do it right..."

He just looked at her in surprise. "Do you really think I would do something like that?"

Bailey shrugged. "To be honest, I don't know. But, I'm not going to take any chances. So, since your five minutes have already started, what do you want?"

"Ummm...well, can we sit down first?"

She shook her head. "Uh uh. You're not here as an invited guest. Besides, you have something smeared on your pant legs that I can only guess what it is. I don't want you soiling our furniture."

Moose sighed again. "Fine. I can see that I'm still not your favorite person in the world. And I can understand that I've done my fair share of stupid things to cause that the past couple of years or so. But I was hoping that if I actually came up here, you could see how serious I am about what I need to say. Bailey, I want us to stop playing this stupid game we've been playing for a long time now..."

She looked at him in confusion. "Stupid game? What the feathers are you talking about?"

He just looked at her before taking a step towards her. And when he did, she lifted the can of mace which made him stop dead in his tracks. Moose held up his hands. "I didn't mean to make you think I was going to do something. All I mean is that since you broke up with me right before you left for that darn boat, its like we've been playing this game where we act like we're mad at the other..."

Bailey looked at him like he had just lost his mind. "Ummm...Moose, I can pretty safely say that I haven't been playing any kind of game with you. If you were, you were essentially playing a game of solitaire then..."

"Of course you were playing! I know you were! When I showed up on the boat that one time, you seemed happy to see me. And then it was like someone flipped a switch, and before I knew it, you were basically yelling at me and telling me to go home because you were staying there! Come on, Apple Dumpling, I know you were just messing with my mind!"

She shook her head and sighed. "No, I wasn't. I admit, at first, when you first arrived on the boat, I was happy to see you. BUT, it wasn't because of you, it was because I was really homesick at the time and anyone or anything from home would have made me feel better. And part of me was missing Kettlecorn so much that I actually did considered leaving the boat. I knew I could trust Cody's opinion, so I asked him what he thought I should do. And even though I would later find out just how much he didn't want to me to go, he refrained from telling me that and just told me to follow my heart. And he was right. I asked my heart what it wanted, and it told me that there was no way I wanted to leave my new friends and the new adventure I had just begun. I thank God every day that I did stay..."

Moose couldn't help but to smirk. "Of course the little feller would tell you something like that. I bet he was happier than a pig in slop that you stayed. What is it with that guy anyways? He's scrawny and wouldn't know a tractor from a harvester. And he..."

Bailey glared at him and cut him off. "Don't even go there, Moose! You don't know Cody so don't even try pass any kind of judgment on him! But to answer your question, yes, he was happy that I stayed - because he had fallen in love with me. In case you've forgotten, he was the one who had put on that makeshift Mulch Festival just for me. He knew I was homesick, and he cared that much about me that he was trying to do something to make me feel better. Even now years later, that ranks near the top of my list of the sweetest and most romantic things he's ever done for me. And trust me, that is a very long list!"

"I'm sure it is! But he's not from Kettlecorn! Do you remember how many things about the festival he screwed up?"

She shrugged. "So what? He did the best he could with what he had available to him. Haven't you ever heard of the expression that its the thought that counts. Besides, by the time the night was over, I was no longer homesick, so he accomplished his goal."

"And just how did he do that?"

Bailey laughed. "You'd never understand even if I told you..."

Moose controlled his temper. "Try me..."

"Alright, fine. Well, once you left the boat that evening, I went back over to him and asked if there was anything I could do to thank him for what he had done for me. All he wanted was a hug, so I had no problems obliging him..." She paused and smiled as she remembered that moment. "Well, when I hugged him, I felt something I had never felt before in my whole life! In that one instant, it seemed like the temperature had just risen about fifty degrees! And you want to know why it did, Moose? It was because of the heat and electricity that was obviously between Cody and I that I hadn't noticed before! But in that moment, I became well aware of it! And it just wasn't that. Suddenly, I wasn't so homesick any more as I felt like I was home right then. But it wasn't a home that I had ever known before..." She paused and laughed. "Its kind of funny how your definition of home can change as you get older. When I was younger, home was our family farm in Kettlecorn. But now, home to me is where ever Cody is. These past four years, my home has been here at Yale because he was here with me. Next year, it will be..." She paused. "Well, you should get the idea..."

Moose glared at her. "He's tried to make you a city slicker like him!"

"No, he hasn't. Cody even offered to move back to Kansas with me if we both decided that KU's medical school is where we wanted to go. Moose, it works both ways. My home is where ever he is, but his home is where ever I am..."

"Come on now, Bailey. You know as well as I do that your Dad will always like me better than him. And I just fit in a lot better with your sisters' fellers."

Bailey laughed. "I doubt that. Once you left after the twister, Daddy said he couldn't think of anyone better to be my boyfriend. And since then, he and Cody have had a chance to bond. And so has he and my brothers-in-law. In fact, this past Christmas, they gave him the initiation ceremony and officially welcomed him into the family. They all like his just fine. And they know he's the best for me because he makes me so happy."

He just looked at her again. "So you say, but I remember when he broke your heart! You two actually broke up! And you even came back to Kettlecorn for a little while, but I didn't found out you had until you had already headed back to boat. I knew I had missed my chance then, but when you came back for your Grammy's birthday, I knew it was our chance to start over again! But no, the little feller just had to be there too! I know you were happy to see me then, and if he hadn't shown up..."

She shook her head and sighed again. "First of all, no Moose, I was not happy to see you. But, I'll admit that I wasn't too happy to see Cody at that moment either. Yes, we did break up for a little while, but we broke each other's hearts. We both readily admit that we were being stupid and stubborn. And for a while, our hurt and anger and pride prevented us from seeing straight and admitting to ourselves what was really important. And yeah, I did go back to Kettlecorn once before my Grammy's birthday, but I spent most of that time working on the farm. When I wasn't, I was talking to my Grammy as she tried to get me to see reason. But at that moment in time, I wasn't quite ready to listen yet. And yeah, when I came back home for Grammy's birthday, Cody did show up too. But he was there because I basically asked him to. Long story short, he called me because he missed me and was finally going to tell me that he still loved me. But he didn't get a chance to because something scared London and I almost to death, and in my moment of panic, I told him that I needed him. So, what did he do? He dropped everything and made his way to Kettlecorn as quickly as he could. In fact, we was in such a hurry to get there that he even got to our farmhouse before London and I did..."

That surprised Moose. "So, because you said you needed him, he came all that way?"

"Yeah, and as much as it seems you didn't want him there, he wasn't happy to see you there either. Cody kept trying get me alone to tell me he still loved me but we kept getting interrupted over and over - finally by the twister. And down in the shelter, when I was knocked out, I had a dream where once again Cody told me to follow my heart. And in that moment, it was like I could finally hear what it was telling me again. I had blocked it out for a while to keep myself from getting further hurt, but then, it was going to make sure I could hear what it had to say. It was telling me that Cody was the man that I loved and that everything else didn't matter. So, that's what you witnessed down there - us finally getting over our stupid and finally admitting that we had always and would always love the other..." A smile formed on her face. "Now over four years later, we're even stronger than ever. Of course, with you there, I didn't want to make you feel bad...then because I thought you were still a decent guy. If I had it to do over now..."

Moose shook his head. "I refuse to believe that! I still think you were at mad at me for whatever reason and were looking to make me pay for it! Yeah, I've overreacted some since then, but I was just playing the game you started! Yeah, I got it wrong that he was talking to his grandmother, and I shouldn't have attacked him like that. And I shouldn't have been so uppity in the way I treated you two after that. But you have to admit...what you two and your sister did was way out of line!"

Bailey could only laugh. "Moose, you're really grasping for straws here..." She paused when she realized the irony of that statement before she continued. "That plan was all Amy's, and she did that because your cousin Squirrel was royally ticking her off. And if you ask me, he got everything that he deserved! Now, as for you thinking I was mad at you, then yeah, I was. No one attacks my Cody and gets away with it! But to think I've been secretly plotting to do things this past seven years just to get a reaction out of you is just plain ludicrous! That may be the most idiotic thing I've ever heard!"

"I don't believe you! You're still playing your mind games, and I'm telling you its time to stop!"

She was about to argue back when she caught herself. Taking a deep breath, she shrugged her shoulders. "Fine. Believe whatever you want. I really don't care. I know what the truth is, and that's all that matters to me..."

He wasn't deterred though. "Look, we can put all of this ugliness behind us. I've already got everything taken care of, so you don't have to worry about anything. I know you've pretended like you're going to marry the little feller this summer, but I already have the church back home reserved that day you had picked. You can still get married on that same day, but this way, to the guy you're supposed to be with..."

By then, Bailey was getting frustrated at Moose's lack of brains or sanity whichever was the case. She was tired of arguing with him, and she was ready to end this for good. "Moose, let me try to explain this to you in a way that you'll actually understand. Yes, I'm getting married this summer...to Cody! And you can have the church that day for all I care. Cody and I are not getting married in Kettlecorn, we're getting married in..." She paused. "...well, that's not really any of your business either. Besides, if I did tell you, I get this bad feeling that you'd try to show up and stop it. And if you did, I would be forced to kill you!" She paused and took another deep breath. "The point is, I have no idea what kind of crazy ideas you've had bouncing around your thick skull these past several years, but I need to introduce you to a little something I like to call reality..."

"But..."

She cut him off. "But nothing! Moose, I didn't choose Cody over you to spite you or anything like that. I want to be with Cody because I love him and can't imagine my life without him! When he asked me to marry him, I said 'yes' because I want to spend the rest of my life with him! Don't ask me how I know, but I already know Cody and I will have a long and happy life together. I know that when we're old and gray, we'll still look at each other with complete adoration like we do right now. I want to marry him, have children with him, and when the time comes, spend eternity side by side with him. I want to do everything with him the people in love do with each other. And more than that, what makes what Cody and I have even better is that we're also each other's best friend..."

Moose just looked at her unable to comprehend what she was saying. "But doesn't it mean anything to you that I love you?"

Bailey shook her head. "No, it doesn't. Does it mean anything to you that I love Cody?"

"But you're my girl! You always will be!"

She sighed and rolled her eyes again. "For the millionth time, no, I'm not. I'm Cody's woman just like he's my man. And Moose, you can't love me. You don't even know me. You knew me when I was 14 years old. Guess what? In several months, I'll be 22 years old. In the past almost eight years, I've had adventures and experiences that have forever changed who I am. They've made me the woman I am today. I'm not the same person I was when you thought you knew me. And I don't even think you knew me then as I think you are only remembering who you wanted me to be. Sorry, but I'm not that person, I have never been that person and nor will I ever be that person..."

"That's not true! Just give me the word, and you can take Betty Lou's place as the bride that day!"

"No! One, its really insulting to me that you would actually think I would string along Cody like you're claiming I've been doing! Anyone who truly knows me knows I'm not capable of that. Second, I really feel sorry for Betty Lou now. I wonder what she would be thinking and feeling if she knew you were here making an ass of yourself like this..."

"Forget about her right now! This has nothing to do with her!"

"And what I do with my life has nothing to do with you. You know Moose, I've given you more than five minutes. You said you would leave if I asked you to. Now, I'm asking you to leave."

He shook his head. "Come on, Bailey...be serious here! You can't really want to spend your life with him. I mean, who's going to protect you and take care of you?"

Bailey sighed again. "Cody already does both. On numerous occasions, he's saved my life. And he takes care of me better than anyone in the world ever could. When he and I are sitting on the couch, he'll wrap his arm around me and I'll lay my head on his shoulder. Like that, I feel more safe and secure than anything else in the world could..."

"Oh please! Now I know you're pulling my leg! I..." But before he could continue, the door to the room opened up again, and Cody came in holding several paper bags full of Chinese food. "Bails, I'm back! You wouldn't believe how hard the snow is coming down out there right now. I..." He stopped dead in his tracks when he saw Moose standing there. "What's he doing here?"

Moose smirked at him. "Me? What are you doing here? Didn't you ever learn any manners, little feller? You just don't walk into a lady's room without knocking first! She could have been in a state of undress or..."

Bailey shook her head once again and turned to Cody. "I still have no idea why he's here. Moose just showed up at the door about ten minutes ago completely out of the blue and immediately began spewing some horse pucky that makes absolutely no sense to me. I think he needs professional help..." She turned back to Moose. "Now, as for Cody, he doesn't have to knock when he comes in here because this is his room too. He and I live here together..."

Hearing that seemed to knock some of the wind out of Moose's sails. He could only stare at her in disbelief. "You...you...you live together?" He shook his head. "What would your family say about that, Bailey?"

"They kind of knew it was coming because we had unofficially essentially been living together since halfway through our freshmen years. And every summer in Boston, we live together in Cody's and his brother Zack's suite in Boston. And whenever we're in Kettlecorn, we always stay on the couch together. Besides, we'll be married in five months, so its not that big a deal..."

Moose shook his head. "No, no, no, no! This isn't how this was supposed to go!"

Cody turned to look at Bailey in confusion. "How what was supposed to go?"

She shrugged. "I'm not sure. Like I said, he's been talking crazy ever since he showed up..."

Moose glared at her again. "I can't believe you're actually living with him! You weren't supposed to actually love him!"

"Well, I do, and I will never apologize for that..." Bailey paused as she was debating saying something else to him. On one hand, it was none of his business. But on the other, it might finally send him over the edge and out of their lives once and for all. So, she decided to give it a shot. "And as for Cody catching me in a state of undress, I wouldn't care if he did at all. He's seen me wearing nothing but my birthday suit hundreds of times by now, so its not like it would be the first time he's seen me like that..."

He just kept staring at her again. "But...but..." He swallowed when realization dawned on him just exactly what she meant. "Oh no...no...no...please tell me you're just messing with my mind again!"

Bailey wrapped her arm around Cody's waist. "No, I'm not. Like I keep trying to tell you, I love Cody with all of my heart and soul. I'm completely comfortable with him, and I like the way he looks at me. I know he thinks I'm the most beautiful woman in the world - inside and out. And I feel the same way about him. So, we have nothing to be ashamed of in how we show each other how much we love each other..."

Moose was seeing his world crumbling down around him and was beginning to get a little desperate. "But what about all the plans I have for us?"

"Why should I care about them? You don't seem to care about the ones Cody and I have for our future. And Moose, if you had even listened to me at all in the last seven years, you would already or should have known all of this. I'm not saying this to be mean or mess with your mind, but you really need to move on with your life. You need to accept that I love Cody and that I'm going to marry him. And you trying to hold on to something from middle school is pretty darn pathetic. Everyone else has grown up, and now its your turn to follow suit. Cody and I, we have a loving, mature relationship now. Someday, I hope you will learn yourself what one of those is like. But please...I'm begging you...give up on these delusions you have about me."

Cody was about to say something then do, but Bailey gave him a squeeze telling him not to. Moose just looked back and forth between them as his mind was trying to grasp something. After a few minutes, he sighed. "You really do love him, don't you?"

Bailey sighed in relief. "Hallelujah! Yes, I do! I've been telling you that for years now..."

He turned to Cody. "And you really do love her?"

"More than anything in this world."

Moose paused. "I guess I just never wanted to accept that before..."

This time, Cody had to say something. "Well, you have to now. My middle school ex finally accepted it, so its your turn. She knows we don't want her in our lives in the future, and that's something else you need to accept..."

That took Moose back again and he turned to Bailey again. "Not in your lives? Can't we still be friends?"

Bailey turned to Cody and felt like throwing her hands up in exasperation. "Is he serious?" She shook her head and turned back to Moose. "No, we can't. I will never forgive you for what you tried to do and what you actually did to Cody. I don't know who you are anymore nor do I care to learn now. Neither of us are the same people we were back when we were kids..." She paused again. "Besides, odds are I will never return to live in Kettlecorn. Yeah, Cody and I will go back to visit from time to time, but even then, hanging out with you won't be on our list of things to do. More importantly, I think we all need a clean break so you can finally move on with your life. If I were you, I'd go back to Kettlecorn and try to figure out what it is you want with your life...that doesn't include me! If its Betty Lou, so be it. But she doesn't deserve what you tried to do today..."

"Are you going to tell her?"

She paused. "I really should, but I want to forget that you even exist, Moose. Hopefully, I can block this from my memory. I wish you well in the future, but I really think you should leave now."

Moose just stood there absolutely defeated, but he tried one last desperate plea. "Wait a minute! You heard the little feller! The weather is really coming down hard out there now! Let me stay here tonight, and I'll leave first thing in the morning..."

Bailey shook her head. "I don't think so. You know where the YMCA is, head back there. Besides, this is still Valentine's Day weekend, and I would like to spend it alone with the man I love..." She walked over to the door and opened it.

He just looked at her again and sighed. "Fine. Good luck to both of you in your futures." He looked straight at Cody. "You better take real good care of her or you'll hear from me."

Cody just stared right back at him. "I was already planning to, but if I hear of you trying to bother my soon to be wife ever again, you won't like what happens. She's made it abundantly clear to you how she feels..."

Moose shook his head and walked out. And as soon as he did, Cody closed the door behind him and locked it. Once that was done, he turned back to Bailey. "Okay, what was that all about?"

She sighed. "I hope it was the beginning of him finally buying a clue. And I hope it was the last time we ever have to deal with him again..."

Fortunately, Cody and Bailey were able to put the sudden appearance of their surprise visitor behind them rather quickly. In fact, they were able to enjoy their lunch before it had a chance to get cold. And by the time they they finished eating, both were in much better moods. So much so that Bailey decided to show Cody her surprise for him. Needless to say, both soon completely forgot that Moose had even been there not an hour earlier. Of course, with them being otherwise occupied, they didn't mind that the weather was growing even worse outside. In fact, when it was still bad the next day, it gave them even more reason to just stay in their room and dive into working on their Biology senior projects. By the time the next two weeks had passed, both were about ninety percent getting their senior projects data organized just the way they wanted it. But they had to put that aside for a week as they had a midterm in their anthropology class the week before spring break. And once they finished it, they focused all of their attention on a ten page paper for their children's literature class they had to edit before turning in the Friday before spring break. Naturally, they turned it in first thing Friday morning.

While most people on campus left campus as soon as they could for spring break, Cody and Bailey didn't. Instead, they spent all day Friday and Saturday working on their 20 page paper for their advanced seminar. According to their logic, when they got back to Boston, they wanted to focus solely on their biology senior project. They felt if they took other work back with them, they would feel torn between which one of the two to work on. So, they dove into their advanced seminar projects and both had the rough drafts of their papers done by Saturday evening. Of course, they did take a break that evening to drive Tapeworm and Gertie to the airport. Seems they were indeed going to hit up the S.S. Tipton II. So, on the drive up to Hartford, they gave them a list of things they wanted to make sure they tried once.

Come Sunday, it was time to finally head back to Boston. And not only did they have to pack for two weeks, both had two large boxes containing the physical copies of their data (just in case). By the end of the next two weeks, they wanted to have their findings written up and their presentations well rehearsed. And that would still leave them a few weeks when they returned to school to hone everything. Fortunately for them, the luck of the draw had them not having to give their presentations until two weeks before reading week began. So, with a full car, they headed back to Boston that morning for the beginning of their not quite conventional final spring break as undergraduates.

_Boston_

A couple of hours later, Cody and Bailey parked their car in the underground parking garage of the Boston Tipton. It wasn't quite noon yet when they began unloading their bags and boxes onto a luggage cart. But when they got to the 23rd floor, Cody was the only one that got off with the cart. A few weeks prior, they had stopped at the Yale bookstore and happened to find something they thought would be perfect for Maddie's baby. And since they fully expected to be back at school when she gave birth, they wanted to go ahead and give it to her. So, Cody managed to push the cart to the door of the suite even though one of the wheels seemed to be stuck making it very difficult. He opened the door, and decided to pull the cart in figuring it would be easier. And once he got it in the suite, he turned around and noticed Zack sitting on the couch watching TV. He just nodded at his brother.

"Hey..."

Zack looked up and nodded back. "Hey..."

Cody was pleasantly surprised. "Well...its nice to see that you're actually talking to me again..."

Zack shook his head and sighed. "Yeah, sorry about that. I know you meant well, but in the process, you really ticked me off..."

"Well, I'm sorry about that. Not for what I was trying to do, but for the way I went about it."

"Don't worry about it. You and Moseby both tried the same approach, but neither one of you were successful. Maya tried a different tactic, and I'm at least thinking about giving Harvard a shot now..."

Cody eyebrows raised. "You are? Do tell. What did she say that actually got through to you?"

Zack laughed. "She used a sport analogy..."

"A sports analogy?" Cody shook his head and groaned. "You would think after over 21 years I would have known to try that..." He laughed. "Well played, Maya...well played."

"I think she would have probably convinced one way or the another. If not that way, I probably would have caved after seeing the look she was giving me. I never want to see that ever again..."

Cody could only nod. "Yeah, Bailey has one of those too. Its good to avoid it at all costs. Plus, girlfriends always seem to have a way to get us to do things we don't want to do somehow..."

"Tell me about it..."

"Well, for the next two weeks, I can promise I won't bring up Harvard to you. In fact, Bailey and I are going to be super busy trying to get our Biology projects done."

"I appreciate that. And at least you guys are finally doing schoolwork during the school year for a change..." He paused. "Speaking of Bailey, where is she?"

"Oh, she'll be back down here shortly. She just headed upstairs to drop off a gift for Maddie's baby. We bought it a Yale bib and a Yale infant onesie..."

Zack shook his head. "Figures..."

He grinned. "Well, we thought we should get to him or her early..." He walked over and sat down on the couch next to Zack. "So, anything good on TV?"

"Not yet, but the conference tournament finals in the SEC, ACC and Big Ten start in about an hour. Thankfully, March Madness starts next Thursday. I would go watch BU play in it...if they had made it. But they lost in the first round of the conference tournament last week..."

"Hey, at least they had a chance to win their conference tournament. The Ivy League is the only conference that doesn't have one. Yale had their best season in years this year, but they finished in second place a game behind Princeton...Princeton!" He sighed. "Anyways, their season is over now, and everyone on campus is focused on lacrosse now..."

"Great...and I thought the sports programs at BU were bad..."

Cody laughed. "Well, the big sports may not be Yale's thing any more, but we do own several college football national titles..."

"Yeah, when they still wore leather helmets and the people in the South were just figuring out what a football was..."

"Okay, that may be true...but put us in a 68 team spelling bee, and I like our chances..."

At that moment, the door opened up, and Bailey came walking back into the suite and sat down next to Cody. He turned to her and smiled.

"Get our gift dropped off?"

She nodded. "Yeah, but I found out some bad news though, Sweetie."

"What?"

"Well, you know tomorrow is when we're supposed to have our first fittings, right?"

Cody paused as he had a feeling that something was now amiss. "Yeah..."

"Seems London has already planned the rest of the day for us. You remember how she said she was going to take us out to register after the first of the year?"

Cody could only nod. "Yeah, and I'm guessing that's what we're doing, huh?"

"You got it..."

"Well, we might as well get it over with tomorrow so we can have the rest of our time here uninterrupted."

Bailey nodded too. "Agreed. We'll hit all of the usual places, and hopefully, it won't be that bad..."

Zack spoke up. "Bad? How can it be bad? You get to run around stores shooting those guns at everything you want! That actually sounds like fun!"

Cody paused to consider that. "You know, Bails...he does have a point. We did actually enjoy playing laser tag that one time..."

"True, and we do still have that paper we wrote saved to our laptops..."

He smiled at her. "Tell you what, Sweetheart. You give me have free reign over kitchen appliances and the like, and I'll trust your judgment and give you final say on everything else..."

Bailey smiled and kissed him. "Deal. Since we have a two car garage, maybe we can register for a ping pong table to put on the other half it?"

"Works for me."

"Good, well, I need to run to the bathroom, be right back."

Once she was gone, Zack shook his head. "Bro...You're going to regret giving her free reign like that. Get used to a pink comforter and sheets..."

Cody leaned over to his brother and whispered. "I'm not going to regret it all. In the end, we both know she was going to convince me that what she wanted was better. Besides, she picked out a comforter for us once before, and it was one we both liked. And think of it this way, I getting brownie points for already letting her have final say over things I don't care about while still keeping final say over the things I really do care about..."

Zack could only nod. "This is true...I hate to say it, but I still have much to learn for you."

The rest of the evening was spent with Cody and Bailey settling back into their room while Zack and Maya eagerly watched the Selection show that afternoon. While they began filling out their first brackets, Cody and Bailey were getting there work stations set up for them to begin working hardcore the following evening. However, by that next night, they were both too tired to even think about getting any work done. They barely had the energy to make it back in the suite. Fortunately, Maddie had gone with them as Trevor had to work late that night. And it was a sight to see for Zack and Maya seeing the overly pregnant woman having to help the two able bodied ones into the suite.

"Where have you guys been?"

After everyone finally got to chance to sit down, Bailey sighed. "Registering for our wedding. Thankfully, we have it all done." She turned to Cody. "We're only getting married once! I have no desire to ever do that again!"

He just nodded. "You're preaching to the choir here, Sweetie. Even though I never really thought about it before, I now have an unwanted knowledge of just exactly what 'Beyond' includes in Bed, Bath and Beyond..."

Maya just shook her head and laughed. "Sounds like a rough day..."

Bailey closed her eyes. "It was. We were actually talking about ordering a pizza when we got back here. Have you guys eaten yet?"

"No, we haven't, but that does sound good."

And that's what they did. Of course, they had to order three pizzas as no one else would even consider touching the pizza Maddie was craving as the combination of toppings she wanted all made their stomachs a little queasy. Unfortunately, the place was running behind on deliveries and would be much quicker to just pick it up. But when you added in drinks, it was going to take two of them to go. Naturally, those two ended up being Cody and Zack as neither could turn down the looks their girlfriends were giving them. Both of them just looked at each other as they shook their heads. But they were surprised when Maddie got up to and indicated she was going along too.

"I just remembered the pizza place is right next door to a McDonald's. I just suddenly have this craving for a shamrock shake..."

They guys just shrugged and followed Maddie out of the suite. Fortunately, the elevator didn't take too long getting there, and soon enough, they were beginning their descent down to the lobby. However, somewhere around the sixth floor, the elevator came to a sudden stop.

Zack sighed. "Great. Its stuck again. Time to let Arwin know again. I think I saw him working on them the other day..." He pressed the intercom button, but nothing happened. "Okay, that can't be good..."

Cody pulled out his cell phone. "Don't worry, I'll just call Bailey and have her go find Arwin. Hopefully, he can get this fixed fast and we'll be on our way in no time..."

So, once he called Bailey and explained to her what their situation was, she promised to call him back as soon as she found Arwin. So, realizing they weren't going anywhere for a the time being, all three of them took a seat so they could relax.

Zack shook his head. "Well, at least we don't have to worry about any of us being claustrophobic."

Cody yawned. "I guess. But I'm thinking about curling up in the corner and grabbing a quick nap. Wake me up when we get moving again..."

"Uh uh! I'm the one who needs the nap. I've spent all day either working or in class while all you've done today was shop!"

"So? I'm the most tired though..."

That lead to the twins bickering back and forth until Maddie put one of her hands on each of their shoulders. "Guys? Can we argue about who's more tired later? I think we have a much bigger problem to worry about right now!"

Zack turned to look at her. "What?" He paused. "Is it just me or did the carpet in here just get a little damp?"

"Because it did! My water just broke!"

___To be Continued... _


	21. A Special Delivery

_Episode 21_

_"A Special Delivery"_

_I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did._

_Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them._

_Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves._

_And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so..._

_The Elevator in the Tipton Hotel_

Almost immediately, Zack and Cody looked at each other with looks of panic on their faces. Had Maddie really just said that her water had broke? And briefly, Zack had a feeling of deja vu that he immediately tried to shake off. Both he and Cody were hoping that she had been mistaken about breaking her water, but at the same time, neither really wanted to be the one to ask her that just in case she wasn't wrong. So, both just kept giving the other looks and trying to will the other one to be the one to speak up. But since they hadn't had any Corsican fruit in almost four years, neither could fully understand exactly what the other was thinking. After what seemed like forever, but was in actuality only about three minutes, Maddie finally sighed and shook er head.

"Did you guys hear what I just said? I said my water just broke!"

Well, now, they had to say something, and Cody finally spoke up. "Maddie, are you sure? I mean...you're not due for another two weeks..."

Zack nodded. "Yeah. Maybe instead of your water breaking, you just...you know...had an accident. I mean, in the past couple of months, you've said you were going to the bathroom over ten times a day..."

Maddie glared at both of them. "Trust me! It was my water that broke!"

Cody sighed. "Why does this keep happening to us?"

His brother looked at him. "What do you mean?"

"You remember our first ever Christmas here at the hotel? We were twelve, and we got momentarily trapped in the elevator with that pregnant woman whose water broke. I think her name was Mary, and her husband's name was Joseph..."

Zack's eyes went wide. "Oh yeah! I do remember that now! I knew this felt familiar, but now I know why!" He turned to Maddie and grinned. "You remember that, don't you Maddie? You were there..."

She glared at him again. "Yeah, I remember, but this time is a little different!"

"How so? Pregnant woman gets trapped in an elevator and her water breaks. Seems pretty much the same to me..."

"Because it wasn't me who was pregnant then!"

The twins looked at each other again. "Okay, Codester, what do we do now? Last time, Mom, Dad and Moseby got us out of the elevator and they handled everything..."

"Why do you think I would know? I was ushered out there too!"

"Because you're the one who's going to be a doctor! I figure as long as you don't try to do those breathing exercises and pass out again, we should be alright..."

"Zack, I really don't think that..."

Maddie rolled her eyes and interrupted them. "Really guys? Cody, call Bailey back and tell her to have Arwin hurry up and fix this! I think the last time this happened it was because of the circuit breakers freezing up. He fixed it quick last time..." She paused. "Oh yeah, and tell her to call for an ambulance!"

Cody nodded. "Right!" He pulled out his cell phone again and dialed Bailey. After close to six rings, she finally picked up again. "Bails! Its me again!"

_"Don't worry. I just got off the phone with Arwin, and he said he would get right to work on fixing it. Has the elevator started working again on its own?_

"Not exactly. You see, we've got kind of a situation here. I'm going to need you to call 9-1-1 and have them send an ambulance to the hotel as soon as possible. And as soon as you get done with that, I need you to call Trevor and tell him to get here like five minutes ago..."

_Upon hearing that Cody needed her to call for an ambulance and then call Trevor, Bailey began to get really worried that something was wrong with Maddie. "Cody? An ambulance? What's going on down there? Is everything okay?"_

He sighed. "Not exactly, Sweetie. Maddie thinks her water just broke!" Upon seeing the look Maddie was giving him, he rephrased that. "Strike that, she's positive it did. So, we need to get her out of this elevator fast!"

_She gasped. "Oh my gosh! I'll get right on that and call you back once I know that an ambulance and Trevor are on their way. And if anything else happens, call me back!"_

"Will do!" He turned away and began whispering in to his phone. "Zack and I will do our best to keep her as calm and comfortable as possible, but I don't think an elevator will be the most sterile or comfortable place to give birth. Plus, to be quite honest, I have no idea what else to do! And I think Zack has even less of an idea what to do than I do!"

_"I completely understand, Cody. Just do your best, and hopefully, Arwin will have it fixed in no time. Just keep your cool yourself. If you and Zack begin to freak out, it will affect Maddie too. Again, I'll call you back when I know something..."_

Cody nodded, said goodbye and and slid his phone back into his pocket. Turning back, he knelt down next to Zack and Maddie.

"Alright, Maddie. Just keep taking deep breaths and stay calm. Everything is going to be alright here. I just talked to Bailey, and she's going to call Trevor and get an ambulance here ASAP. Don't stress out about any of this, and we'll be out of here soon. Before you know it, you'll be on the way to the hospital to have your baby..."

She took a deep breath. "Okay...I'll try." And with that, Zack and Cody tried to get her as comfortable as possible as she leaned up against the back corner of the elevator car. Maddie just up her breathing exercises she learned in her Lamaze classes and that seemed to be helping her. But as calm as she looked, Zack was quickly becoming a basket case. He grabbed his brother's arm and pulled him off to the far corner of the elevator car and began whispering very excitedly.

"Codester! What are we supposed to do now?"

Cody shrugged and whispered back. "We wait and pray that Arwin fixes the elevator as quickly as he can..."

"What do we do if he can't?"

"Don't think about that right now. Think positively!"

Zack sighed. "Well, at least you're here too. At least one of us knows what he's doing..."

Cody just gave him a look. "And what makes you think that I do?"

Zack gave him the same look right back at him. "Gee...let me think! Could it be because you're the one who's going to be the future doctor here! I know I've never done anything like this before!" He paused. "Well, you know...except for the last time we did this, but we really didn't do anything then..."

Cody shook his head and rolled his eyes. "And I have? Have you forgotten that I don't start medical school until this August. Until then, you have as much medical training as I do! The closest I've ever been to a live human birth was my own!" He paused too. "Well, you know...except for the last time we did this..."

"What about Bubba?"

"He was hatched from an egg!"

"Well, okay, I'll give you that one, but didn't you tell me you once helped out in delivering a cow on Bailey's family farm one summer?"

Cody looked at his brother in disbelief. "Yeah, like that's the same thing!"

"Close enough! And a lot closer to anything I've ever ever seen!" He paused. "Well, you know..."

He was about to argue back when he realized it was getting them nowhere. So, he stopped and took a deep breath. "Look, Zack...I do know from my biology of reproduction class that the quicker we can get out of here, the better, but we do have some time before we really have to worry. In humans, a woman's first time giving birth can last up to fifteen hours. Hopefully, fifteen hours from now, we'll be long out here..."

Zack just nodded. "Okay, good...that makes me feel a little better now."

Cody smiled at him. "Besides. Its just her water that broke. She hasn't even begun having contractions yet. Until she does, we should be golden. And we have several hours before those will begin..."

At that moment, Maddie let out a loud scream as she clutched her abdomen. Zack just looked at his brother and shook his head. "You just couldn't keep your big mouth shut, could you?"

_The Suite on the 23____rd__ Floor_

After Bailey ended her second phone call from Cody, she just stared at her phone for a few seconds trying to imagine what all was going on down in the elevator. It appeared that their quiet evening of eating some pizza before calling it a night early was now a thing of the past. Of course, her actions only drew Maya's attention, and she walked over next to Bailey.

"Was that Cody calling you again? Is the elevator working again now?"

Bailey She shook her head. "Not exactly. Seems they picked the worst time to head down to go get pizza..."

That alarmed Maya, and she gave Bailey a serious look. "Why do you say that? What did Cody say? Is something else wrong now?"

"Oh yeah! Things just got decidedly more interesting down there! Cody just told me that Maddie's water just broke!"

Maya's eyes went wide when she heard that. "Excuse me? I think I heard you wrong. I could have sworn you just said Maddie's water just broke, but she's not due for another two weeks..."

Bailey could only nod. "Yeah, I thought the same thing, but according to Cody, it seems like the baby was ready to come tonight. So, he told me call 9-1-1 and have them get an ambulance and some paramedics here ASAP..."

"Is there anything I can do to help?"

"Yeah. Call Trevor and let him know what's going on. I'm sure he'll want to get here as soon as he can."

"Will do..."

Both pulled out their cell phones and began making their individual phone calls. As soon as 9-1-1 answered, Bailey, as calmly as she could, explained that they had a woman in labor stuck in an elevator at the Tipton Hotel. Of course, they asked her several questions about Maddie's condition that Bailey wasn't sure of the answers to, so she told them to just hurry up and get there. Finally, the 9-1-1 operator relented and said paramedics would be on their way to hotel shortly. She did ask Bailey to be down in the lobby to meet them once they arrived. So once Bailey hung up, she turned to Maya who was just hanging up her phone too.

"Did you get a hold of Trevor?"

Maya shook her head. "No, all I got was his voice mail. I figured it would be best for him to hear this in person, so I just left a message telling him to call me back as soon as he could. I'll try him again in a few minutes."

"Well, I'm heading down to the lobby to meet the EMTs. Try to keep getting a hold of Trevor, and stay here in case he decides to just show up here instead."

And with that, Bailey immediately headed for the door. But when she opened it up, she found Trevor standing there about ready to knock.

"Hey...Have either of you seen Maddie? I know she was going to your fittings with you today, and then she left a message saying she was going registering with you guys afterwards. I tried calling her cell phone, but all I got was her voice mail, and she didn't answer our land line at home. Since I was in the neighborhood, I decided to check in with you guys in case she might still be here..."

Bailey sighed. "Yeah, she's sort of here..."

That confused Trevor. "What do you mean is sort of here?"

"Come downstairs with us, and we'll explain on the way..."

Trevor frowned. "Wait a minute. What's going on here? Why do we need to go downstairs?"

Maya grabbed his arm. "Because, Maddie, Zack and Cody all went out to get some food, but right now, they are stuck in the elevator."

"Oh...I guessed I passed them on the way up then. Will they be out soon? Has someone called maintenance yet?"

"We hope so, and yes, we've called Arwin. But, there is another problem..."

"What other problem?"

"Maddie's water has broke!"

Trevor's eyes went wide. "What did you just say?"

_Back in the Elevator_

Immediately after hearing Maddie shriek, Zack and Cody rushed back over to her side. As she was grimacing in pain, both of them tried to comfort her and getting her doing her breathing her exercises again. And after a few moments, whatever pain she was in seemed to subside. Zack reached down and took her hand in his.

"Maddie? Are you alright?"

She looked up at Zack and glared at him. "I'm in labor! What do you think?"

He backed away a little bit. "Sorry. Just trying to be helpful. Besides, I didn't know what was going on. In fact, I was kind of hoping that last blood curdling scream was due to indigestion. I mean, I remember Woody letting out a few of those a few hours after he had ravished the Mexican buffet. And..."

Maddie cut him. "Zack, shut up! That was definitely not indigestion! They told us in my Lamaze class what to expect a contraction to feel like, and I'm pretty sure that was just one!"

Zack looked up at Cody. "Okay, Brainiac, she's started to have contractions. What do we do now?"

"Like I keep telling you before, I've never done this part before!" Cody paused to think. "Alright, as I recall from my Biology of Reproduction class, in humans, contractions are just the beginning of the labor process. Usually, they are pretty far apart and start off fairly mild..."

Maddie looked up and glared at him that time. "Trust me! I wouldn't consider that mild!"

Cody could only nod. "Right...of course. Unfortunately, I think they're going to get worse before its all said and done. But as long as they don't get worse and happen more regularly, we should be okay here..."

This time, Maddie reached up and grabbed his shirt and pulled his face down to hers. "We should be okay here? That's easy for you to say! You're not the one who's going through this. Here's a newsflash! That last contraction really hurt! I fully expected to be doing this in a hospital with an epidural and whatever other drugs they would give me!"

Cody's eyes went wide at her outburst. "Sorry, Maddie but we are doing the best we can here. Hopefully, Arwin will get the elevator moving very soon. And hopefully, Bailey has got an ambulance on the way, and the paramedics will have a much better idea of what they're doing than I am. And if they get here soon enough, they can get you to the hospital and get you your epidural..."

She gritted her teeth. "For all of our sakes, I sure hope so. Because I'm starting to get the feeling that my baby is in a hurry to come out and say hello! If it doesn't slow down, you might get to deliver your first baby before medical school, Dr. Martin!"

He gulped. "Well, for all of our sakes, lets hope he or she can wait a little while. But the good news is that until your contractions are less than ten minutes apart, we should have time..."

While Cody just knelt there, Zack felt his phone began to vibrate. He pulled it out, saw it was Maya calling and quickly, he answered it. And so to keep his hands free just in case he was needed for something, he put it on speakerphone.

"Is Arwin fixing this thing yet, Babe?"

But it wasn't Maya's voice he heard respond. Instead, it was Trevor's. _"Zack! How is Maddie doing?"_

Upon hearing his voice, Maddie looked back over towards Zack and yelled out. "Trevor! Where are you?"

"_Maddie! I'm down here in the lobby with Bailey and Maya. How are you doing? Are you okay?"_

She took a deep breath. "Well, I've been better!"

"_I understand, Honey. I know this isn't how we envisioned this happening. But you're in good hands. __Just remember the breathing exercises they taught us in Lamaze. Just keep doing those, and we'll try to get you out there as soon as we can!"_

Maddie just nodded before she let out another blood curdling scream. Zack cringed and looked at his brother. "Okay, that one sounded worse than the first one..."

Cody just nodded and looked at his watch. "Yeah..." He swallowed. "But even worse that that...it was less than ten minutes since her last one. By the time we get out of here, they may be four of us in here..."

_The Tipton Lobby_

Trevor, Maya and Bailey were all standing around the lobby all listening to the phone call when they heard Maddie scream out again. And immediately, Trevor began to really panic. He began looking around the lobby frantically trying to find Arwin when he saw him exiting the doorway from the stairs down up to the roof. As quickly as he could, Trevor ran over to him and grabbed him by the shoulders.

"Arwin! How quickly can you get the damn elevator fixed?"

Arwin paused. "Well...ummm...I do have some good news and some bad news..."

By then, Maya and Bailey had joined them, and Maya spoke up. "What's the good news?"

"Well, I do know what's wrong with it now. It seems that the elevator's fuse has blown..."

Trevor was frantic. "Then why are you down here! Go back up to the roof and change fuses then!"

Arwin winced. "I would if I could. The elevators take a special sized fuse that I seem to be all out of. None of the other ones I have will work. I'd have to run down to the hardware store to get another one..."

Trevor just glared at him. "Then get moving then! Run! Run!"

"Again, I would...but the hardware store down the street is already closed for the night. But, I might have one in my apartment that might work though. You see, I was working on this..."

"I don't care what you were working on right now! Just go to your place and get it!" When he didn't see Arwin moving, he yelled out. "Now, Arwin!"

Arwin saw the look on Trevor's face, and he took off in a dead sprint out the front door of the hotel. And almost immediately after he left, two paramedics came running in to the lobby rolling a stretcher in with them. Immediately, Trevor, Maya and Bailey ran over to them.

"Thank goodness you guys are finally here!"

"We got here as quickly as we could. Is the pregnant woman still stuck in the elevator?"

Trevor sighed. "Unfortunately, she is..."

The paramedic paused. "I'm sorry then. There's nothing we can really do until she's out of there..."

_Back in the Elevator _

Maddie was still coming down from her last contraction when she felt another one getting ready to hit. And as it did, she just grabbed Zack's hand again and began squeezing it as her contraction hit her full force. This time, both Maddie and Zack were screaming out in pain. Realizing they were running out of time, Cody swallowed and tried to think what to do next. But, that was kind of hard to do as he was beginning to really panic as well.

"Maddie, you're contractions are coming way too quickly! According to what I've read..."

She turned, glared at him grabbed him by the shirt again. "I don't care what you've read, Cody! I'm having a baby, and I think I'm about to have it right now! Since you're the closest thing to a doctor inside of here, you're going to have to deliver it!"

"But..."

"No buts! Cody, I really need you here!"

He gulped. "Okay...I...ummm...okay, right now, we need to...ummm..."

Zack looked up at him still wincing from the pain in his hand. "Do what you have to do, Cody, and do it now while I still have a functioning hand! Boil water, get clean towels, I don't care! Just do it!"

"Do you see anything in here I can boil water with? And where am I going to get clean towels?"

"Go find a maid's cart!"

Cody smirked at his brother. "Do you think if I could get out of here right now, that looking for a maid's cart would be first on my list of things to do?"

Maddie screamed out again. "Stop! I don't care how you do it, but Cody, get this baby out of me!"

_Back in the Lobby_

With Zack's cell phone still on speakerphone mode, everyone heard everything that was going on in the elevator car. Trevor, Maya and Bailey all just looked at each other in shock. Fortunately, one of the EMTs grabbed the cell phone out of Trevor's hand and began barking instructions to Cody. And for the next fifteen minutes, everyone else stood there in silence as they kept hearing Maddie scream out in pain while Cody would occasionally offer his apologies to her. After what seemed like hours, they heard an unmistakeable sound – the crying of a baby.

And as if on cue, Arwin ran back into the lobby holding the fuse and immediately headed back to the stairs so he could get to the fuse box. A few minutes later, everyone heard another comforting sound – the elevator beginning to move. Thirty seconds later, the doors finally opened into the lobby. And the site everyone saw would have been comical if it had been happening to someone else. Maddie was holding a bundle wrapped in a t-shirt while Zack and Cody sat on either side of her. Zack was just sitting there holding his hand while Cody was staring at his hands that were covered in placenta and afterbirth.

Immediately, the EMTs rushed into the car, and loaded the new mother and child up onto the stretcher. And as they did, Trevor made his way by Maddie's side. She looked up at him and smiled.

"There you are, Trevor. I'd like to introduce you to our daughter..."

Trevor just smiled back. "A girl? We have a girl? I have a girl!"

The EMTs began rolling the stretcher out of the elevator. "Don't worry, Ma'am. We'll get you and your daughter to the hospital as quickly as we can. You both seem fine, but we'll get you checked out just to make sure." He turned to Cody and smiled. "Good work, young man!"

Zack spoke up. "Can I come to the hospital too? I think I have a broken hand..."

Maya smiled at him. "Come on, Babe. I'll drive you over there myself." She turned to Bailey. "You guys want to ride over with us?"

Bailey looked at Cody before shaking her head. "We'll be about twenty minutes behind you. I'm pretty sure Cody's going to want to grab a shower and clean up first..."

_Brigham and Women's Hospital _

Several hours later, the waiting room at the hospital was full of family, friends and other well wishers waiting to hear word about Maddie and her new daughter. Besides those who had been there to witness the birth, Maddie's parents, her brother, Liam, London, Todd, Moseby, Tutt and Carey were all there waiting to make sure everyone was alright. And it seemed like everyone was going to make it through in perfect health. Almost. About an hour after they had gotten there, Zack returned back to the waiting room with Maya by his side. And his left hand was wrapped up in a gauze bandage.

And when she saw that sight, Carey jumped up out of her chair as her eyes went wide. "Zack! What happened to you?"

He just sighed. "Maddie used my hand as her personal stress reliever as she was having contractions. I thought she had broken it, but fortunately, its just badly bruised..."

Everyone looked at him and tried their best to hold back their laughter. Unfortunately, they were unable to. Laughter filled the waiting room as Zack just shook his head.

Carey smiled. "Well, I guess delivering a baby in an elevator has become a family tradition, huh? I've done it. Your father has done it. And now, you two boys have done it..."

"No offense, Mom, but this is one family tradition I wish I hadn't been part of..."

"Well, look at it this way. You've both already lived through the experience of a child's birth..." She winked at Maya and Bailey. "So, they have no excuses in the future..."

Everyone again laughed at that, but, fortunately for Zack, it was at that moment that Trevor came back out into the waiting room. Immediately, they forgot about teasing Zack, and everyone turned their attention towards the new father. And Trevor had the biggest smile on her face.

"Mother and daughter are both going to be just fine. They've both been checked out, and Maddie is actually now trying to feed our little one for the first time."

Everyone sighed in relief, but Maddie's mother spoke up. "When can we see them?"

"The doctor said in about forty-five minutes. And Maddie said herself that she knew it was now late, but that she wanted to see all of you before you left..."

And with that, he headed back behind the big doors, and everyone else began talking amongst themselves. Bailey turned to Cody and smiled.

"Some night, huh?"

He chuckled. "You can say that again. I'm kind of glad now that our dorm doesn't have elevators. The next time I go for..." He paused as his eyes went wide. "Uh oh! The pizzas! That place will never serve us ever again!"

She laughed. "Don't worry about. I called them while you were in the shower and explained what had happened. The owner said he could definitely understand as something similar happened to his sister..."

"Well, that's good to know..."

At that moment, both of their stomachs began to rumble. "I guess our stomachs are trying to tell us something, huh? Trying to remind us we still haven't eaten yet. Well, odds are we're going to spend a lot of time here as its one of Harvard's biggest teaching hospitals. So, what do you think about us heading downstairs and checking out the cafeteria?"

Cody just nodded and smiled. "Yeah, that probably would be a good idea..." He paused. "You know, Bails. I get the feeling I'm not going to forget this night for a long, long time..."

She laughed. "I imagine you won't. Its not everyday you have to deliver a baby in an elevator."

"Just twice now..." He laughed too. "Besides, all I did was to follow the instructions the paramedics gave me. Other than that, I didn't do anything except keep praying that I wouldn't do something to screw up and potentially put Maddie and the baby's life in jeopardy..."

"Well, you didn't. According to the EMTs, you did everything exactly the way an old pro would." She grinned and teased him. "Personally, I think its a sign that Maddie was right. You are meant to be an obstetrician while I'm the pediatrician..."

He just looked at her and shook his head. "Uh uh. Nope. Not gonna do it. Wouldn't be prudent. Don't bet on it..." He laughed again. "I'll admit, when that baby slid into my hands, it was an indescribable feeling that gave me a rush. But the only time I ever want to be in the vicinity of a baby getting born ever again will be when its our own children."

Bailey smiled at him. "So, saying you're definitely going to be in the delivery room with me now?"

Cody smiled back at her. "Definitely! And its like Mom said, if I didn't pass out back in the elevator, I don't think I will then either. Plus, you heard the way Maddie was yelling at me. After dealing with that once, it should be a breeze the next time..."

Close to an hour later, everyone was finally cleared to go in and see Maddie in her room. Naturally, everyone let the new grandparents and uncle be the first ones to see her. But after a while, they cleared out to let all of Maddie's friends visit with the new mother and daughter. And when they walked in the room, Maddie just looked up and smiled at everyone.

"Hey guys..." And immediately, she noticed the bandage on Zack's hand. "Sorry about that, Zack..."

He shrugged. "No worries. Nothing is broken, but the next time you're pregnant, don't be surprised if I avoid you at all costs when you are about three weeks from your due date..."

She laughed. "I completely understand and won't take any offense." She turned to Cody. "And you. Not bad. Not bad at all. Though, I'm certainly hoping medical school will help you get rid of the deer in headlights look you had going on..."

He laughed. "Thanks...I think. But like Zack said, I think I'll avoid you when you are close to your due dates in the future..."

"Awww..." She teased him. "But you made such a good OB..."

"Well, hopefully that was the last time I'll ever have to do anything like that again..."

Maddie grinned. "Never say never. Anyways, while we're all here, there are a few favors Trevor and I want to ask of a few of you. London, we've known each other for a long, long time, and you're one of my best friends in the world. Even though we were terrible at being co-mothers, Trevor and I would be honored if you'd be the godmother to our daughter."

London's eyes went wide. "Me? Godmother?"

Maddie smiled. "Of course you. All I ask is that you don't try to spoil her when she gets older..."

"Like that's going to happen! I have to make sure she won't have hideous hair and clothes like her mother did!" She smiled at Maddie. "I'll try to tone it down though. So, if I'm the godmother, who is the godfather?"

Trevor spoke up. "Actually, until a few hours ago, we were still undecided about that..."

Maddie continued. "But after what happened in the elevator, we can't think of anyone better to be our daughter's godfathers than the two guys who helped bring her into the world. So, what do you say, Zack and Cody? You two think you can be co-godfathers?"

Both were stunned by the request but quickly nodded their heads. "Absolutely!"

Zack paused. "Does this mean I can get a pinky ring and make people kiss it now?"

Everyone just looked at him and groaned. Maya shook her head. "They gave him some painkillers. I hope those are to blame for that..."

London rolled her eyes and turned back to Maddie. "So, does my goddaughter have a name yet?"

Maddie smiled again. "Yeah, she does. That was another thing we hadn't decided on yet, but we both came up with the perfect name for her a little while ago. We decided to name her after her two godfathers. I'd like to introduce everyone to Zoey..."

_Cody and Bailey's Room_

Another hour later, Maddie's doctor finally shooed everyone out of her hospital room claiming that both mother and child needed their rest. Besides, he claimed visiting hours had officially ended several hours earlier, and that everyone could come back and visit them in the morning. Of course, Maddie's mother began arguing with him that she should be allowed to stay with her daughter and granddaughter. Cody found himself laughing, and when Bailey turned to him to find out why, he just said it was nice to finally be the one to be thrown out of a hospital room and not have people arguing over who was going to get to stay with him. She just shook her head at him, and grabbed his arm to lead him back outside.

By the time everyone got back to the Tipton, it was now close to two o'clock in the morning and everyone was ready to call it a night. When they got to their bedroom, both Cody and Bailey were exhausted and ready to see their day finally come to a close.

"Bails, you remember how the day we took the MCAT seemed like the longest day ever?"

She nodded. "Uh huh."

"I think this day has passed it with relative ease. This may have just become the longest day of my life. It seems like it was last week we went for our fittings and then did shopping for blenders, toasters and the like..."

Bailey couldn't help but to laugh. "Tell me about it..." She paused as she thought of something. "And Sweetie?"

"Yeah?"

"The next time it occurs to you to say we're going to have a stress free time doing something, please just keep your mouth shut. I believe that when we were talking to Gertie and Tapeworm about our spring break, your exact words were that we were going to have a dull and boring spring break. Its not even a day old, and its already been far from that!"

Cody had to laugh too. "Yeah, I did say that, didn't I? Well, look at it this way – we still have almost two weeks left of it. Personally, I'm looking forward to just going back to work on our Biology senior projects. After today, dull and boring sounds just fine to me!"

"You and me both, Cody...you and me both." She yawned. "But don't be surprised if I sleep in a little in the morning."

"I was just about to tell you the same thing..."

Both changed into their pajamas and climbed into bed together. And as they laid there about to slip off to dreamland, Cody spoke up again.

"Bails?"

"Yeah?"

"Don't you think it would have been nice if this had happened last spring break?"

She opened her eyes and looked up at him. "Why do you say that?"

"Well, by then, you had already had your moment where you could show in medical school interviews that you had faced a medical emergency and passed it with flying colors. I mean, when I collapsed, you did everything you were supposed to do. If this had happened last year, I could have used it to make myself sound better to some schools..."

She yawned again. "Sweetie...we both got full rides to Harvard Medical School. I think we did just fine the way it was. Besides, I still think tonight was a sign trying to tell you something though..."

He pulled her closer and kissed her forehead. "And I still say I'm going to pass on that. The only woman I want to see give birth ever again is you..." He paused and began chuckling.

"What's so funny?"

"Oh, I was just thinking. You remember how I keep saying I hope our kids take after you?"

"Uh huh..."

"Well, I think I need to make an addendum to that. There is one trait I sincerely hope they don't take after you with. I want them to take after me and have the patience to wait until we get to a hospital to be born..."

Bailey just looked at him. "Uh uh. It doesn't matter when they want to come..." She grinned at him. "Because if they get impatient, their daddy knows how to deliver them now!"

_Zack and Maya's Room_

Like Cody and Bailey, both Zack and Maya were flat out exhausted too as they finally made it back to their room. Fortunately, Maya's class the next morning wouldn't be too early of one, and London had told Zack that he didn't have to be at work at eight. So, both were happy they wouldn't have to be getting back up in a matter of a few hours. And as they were getting ready for bed themselves, Zack was having trouble unbuttoning his shirt with the bandage on his hand. Maya just shook her head and laughed.

"Here, let me help you..."

He sighed with relief. "Thanks."

Once she unbuttoned his shirt, she noticed something and frowned. "Zack, what happened to your undershirt?"

Zack just gave her a look. "What do you think little Zoey was wrapped up in when you all first saw her? Cody said since I had showered once we got back from our martial arts class that my shirt was probably fresher than the one he had been wearing all day..." He sighed and shook his head. "And that was my new Red Sox shirt too. I had only gotten to wear it once before today..."

Maya laughed. "I think you'll be okay, Babe. Besides, if you believe in that kind of thing, maybe being wrapped up in a Red Sox shirt will set a tone for her future sports loyalty..."

"It will if her godfather has anything to do with it!"

"Uh huh..." She teased him. "Maybe I should go out shopping for a Yankee's onesie for her?"

"Don't even think about it!"

She smiled. "You're no fun...so, how is your hand doing?"

"Its sore, but the doctor said it would be fine in a couple of days. And thankfully, it was my left hand. So, it should be good as new when we begin our spring breaks next week..."

She smiled at him again. "Well, I'm extremely proud of you for keeping your cool tonight. You did a wonderful job in helping out Maddie..."

Zack just gave her a look. "As if! I was freaking out the whole time! I'm just glad Cody was in there too. If he hadn't, I would have had to deliver the baby, and for my goddaughter's sake, I'm glad I didn't!"

"I think the paramedics could have walked you through it."

"Maybe, but baby bro and sis can have the medical profession. I'll take to sitting behind a desk the rest of my life thank you very much!"

Maya laughed again. "Awwww..."

"I'll tell you one thing though. After getting through all of that tonight, I don't think anything else in this world could faze me anymore..."

She paused before smiling. "Anything?"

Zack shook his head. "Nope. Nothing could ever freak me out more than being stuck in an elevator and Maddie telling us that her water had just broke..."

Maya grinned. "I'm glad to hear you say that. So, after all of that, the thought of failing at Harvard Business School should be no big deal now, right?"

He just looked at her. "Now, wait a minute here! That's not what I said!"

She shrugged her shoulders. "Well, you did say nothing..."

"Well, yeah, but..."

"But what?"

Zack sighed and paused to think. After a minute or two, he shook his head in defeat. "But nothing. You're right. After tonight, there is nothing else that anyone or anything can throw at me that will faze me..."

Maya smiled. "So, does that mean...?"

"I'll talk to Moseby and London in the morning. If they are still on board, I'll make the call to Harvard tomorrow and let them know I'm accepting their offer..."

___To be Continued..._

**AN: I know this will be two chapters posted in back to back days, but I had someone PM and ask me to post another as they were about to be deployed tomorrow. Naturally, I'm happy too, and once again I would like to thank that person for their service. Now, as a side not, this chapter is a very good reason I wait some time between post chapters. I had actually forgotten about the Christmas episode of the first season of SLOZAC where the woman got trapped in the elevator with Zack and Cody and went into labor. Maybe I was thinking of it subconsciously when I was initially writing this chapter. Anyways, I went back and watched that episode on youtube this morning and edited this chapter the reflect things that happened then. Thank you to those who pointed that out to me.**___  
_


	22. Graduation

_Episode 22_

_"Graduation"_

_I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did._

_Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them._

_Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves._

_And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so..._

_Boston_

Fortunately for everyone, the next two weeks in Boston didn't have nearly the same amount of drama that Monday had brought them. Maddie and little Zoey were kept in the hospital for a couple of days, but by Thursday morning, both were given clean bills of health and released to go home. And for Maddie and Trevor, the fun was just beginning as they were about to experience the highs and lows that all new parents go through when they first bring their children home from the hospital. At first, when they had found an apartment in the same building as Maddie's parents, they were unsure whether or not that would be a good thing or a bad thing. But those next two weeks, they quickly realized how much of a godsend it was going to turn out to be. Maddie's parents had come a full 180, and were always over doting on their granddaughter. And that was just fine with Maddie and Trevor as it allowed them to catch quick naps while they did. Seems like little Zoey was nowhere ready to sleep through the night just yet, and both new parents were constantly up with her either feeding, changing or rocking her back to sleep.

And while the residents of the Tipton hotel did visit the new little family often, they did all have their own lives to lead and obligations that had to meet. For Zack, he did indeed meet with Moseby and London on Tuesday morning before heading to class, and they immediately gave him the green light for Harvard. So, that afternoon while he was having lunch with Maya, he put his cell phone on speakerphone so should could hear him tell Harvard he was taking them up on their acceptance and then break the news to BU that he would not be attending there after all. Naturally, she was so proud of him, and Zack was actually proud of himself too even if he did still have some lingering worries. But both still had classes to finish that week before they had their own spring break the following week. And after the week they had had, both were looking forward to a week of doing absolutely nothing. They had considered going somewhere, but with them going to Hawaii in a few months, they decided to save some money.

For Cody and Bailey, they spent the next two weeks engrossing themselves into trying to finish the first drafts of their Biology senior project write ups and power point presentations. And by the middle of the second week of their spring break, both were successful in completing both of those. They felt really good that all they had left to do when they got back to school was to edit them and make final changes. Of course, while they did have captive audiences, they did give both of their presentations to Carey, Zack and Maya on Thursday evening - after promising to buy dinner that night. Everyone else wanted dinner first before they would sit through them, so they agreed. And after their presentations finished, Zack and Maya had both fallen asleep and Carey could only say both sounded very interesting even though she had no idea what they had been talking about. Cody and Bailey both just shrugged and accepted those results considering their audience.

That left everyone with nothing to do on Friday, and fortunately, it was warm that day. So, they all headed over to Boston Common and enjoyed spending a day outdoors. But, on Saturday, they had something else to do as they had been talked into helping Maddie with the baby while Zack and Cody helped Trevor finish babyproofing their apartment.

And it seemed like baby Zoey immediately took to Maya and Bailey. Maddie couldn't help but notice this and smiled at them both. "You guys look like naturals."

Maya looked up at her. "I have no idea how. I'm an only child, and I've never babysat before. This is a first for me holding one of these..."

"Well, like I said, you're doing a wonderful job, and Zoey seems really taken with you..." She looked over at Bailey. "You too. I think you both are going to make terrific mothers someday..."

Bailey smiled at her. "I sure hope so. Cody and I plan on having six of our own someday..."

Maddie couldn't help but to laugh. "Six? Are you serious? Well, good luck with that, Sister! Let me know if that is still your plan after you have your first one!"

"Well, I come from a big family, and I want one of my own. I loved growing up with so many siblings, and I want that for my kids too. Fortunately, Cody is on board with that."

"More power to you then..." She paused. "But with both of your choices of boyfriends, I guess that's something you will have to deal with..."

Maya looked back up at her. "What do you mean?"

"Well, you two are dating twins. I'm pretty sure that runs in the family..."

Bailey laughed. "It does, but not to the extent you might imagine. I mean, Cody and Zack are monozygotic twins, and those only occur in about three out of every one thousand deliveries world wide."

Maya turned to her. "Mono what?"

"Identical twins. Dizygotic or fraternal twins occur more often, but that is two eggs being fertilized by two different sperm resulting in two children who have a very small chance of having the same chromosome profile. And there is a third type called semi-identical twins that occur due to the egg splitting before being fertilized bye two different sperm or due two two different sperm fertilizing the same egg creating a triploid before splitting. In either one of those scenarios, both twins would have the same genetic material from their mother, but different genetic material from their father."

Maddie and Maya just looked at her, and Bailey began laughing. "Hey, Cody wasn't the only one who took the Biology of Reproduction class...

Maddie just shook her head and laughed too. "Okay, you're definitely going to be Zoey's pediatrician some day! But until that time, don't think I won't be calling on both of you to babysit every so often."

Maya smiled. "I'd be happy too."

Bailey smiled too. "Same here. Cody and I would love to watch this little angel anytime." She paused. "Well, I guess that's assuming she won't mind the smell of formaldehyde for our first year of medical school..."

Maddie laughed again. "Well, we've already learned that freshly laundered clothes will make her spit up. So, I guess we'll just have to wait and see..." She shook her head. "Anyways, you'll have to let me know when your graduation at Yale is, and we'll try to come down for it. I want to see what the campus down there looks like."

"Well, its going to be the Monday after the second weekend in May. If you can make it, just let London know. There is a London Inn near campus that she is putting both of our families up in, and I bet she'll get you guys a room there too."

"And then Zack graduates the following Sunday..." Maddie sighed. "I can't believe I'm two months away from watching the twins graduate from college. I would say that makes me feel really old, but then again, Maya is holding my daughter in her arms." She paused. "Now, when they become fathers..."

Bailey and Maya just looked at each other and began laughing. "Something tells us you'll have several more years before you have to worry about that..."

Maddie just looked at them both. "You never know. I thought the exact same thing and look where I am now..."

Just then, baby Zoey spit her pacifier out, and as if on reflex, Bailey caught it before giving it back to her. As she was doing that, Maya and Maddie looked at her again. "Nice reflexes!"

Bailey grinned. "Well, besides our self defense class, Gertie and I have been taking Pilates classes too. They've helped my reflexes and flexibility..."

Maddie nodded. "Ahhh, yes...I've taken those before too..." She sighed. "Maybe I should start taking them again to help get rid of this baby weight I put on..."

"Maybe when Zoey starts sleeping more regularly?"

"From your lips to God's ears...let it be so!" She shook her head before looking back at Bailey. "So, more flexible, huh? I bet Cody loves that as much as Trevor did..."

Bailey just shook her head and smiled. "No comment..."

_New Haven_

The next day, Cody and Bailey finally returned back to New Haven to begin the homestretch. And when they arrived, they found Gertie and Tapeworm were already back too. So, they asked them how they enjoyed the boat, and Tapeworm could only grin and say he really wished he had gone to high school with them. Of course, he asked them if their spring break was as boring as they thought it would be. Cody and Bailey just looked at each other before laughing. After seeing the inquisitive looks from their friends, they explained what had happend on their first Monday back.

"Whoa!" Tapeworm paused. "So, how did you cut the umbilical cord, Cody?"

Cody paused. "You guys remember the pocket Leatherman you guys gave me for Christmas this past year?"

"Yeah..."

He sighed. "Lets just say I spent Tuesday boiling it in water to sterilize it again..."

And while everyone was happy to be back at school, they knew their time at Yale was soon coming to a close. Starting that Monday, they had five weeks of undergraduate classes left before they would be done with them at Yale forever. But unlike other seniors on campus who who were viewing the final weeks as a marathon they just wanted to finish, Cody and Bailey felt refreshed and viewed it like a final sprint. The sooner they finished what they needed to get done, the sooner they could sit back and just wait for graduation to arrive. So, for the first three weeks back, they focused each week on a specific class or classes to finish up their final big projects of the semester in. The first week was spent finishing and editing their final papers in their children's literature class as well editing them. And once they finished that, they spent the rest of their free time that week finishing and editing their final papers in their anthropology class. The next week, they turned their attention to editing their advanced seminar class and preparing their presentations they would have to make for those. And once they finished those to their satisfaction, they turned their focus back to editing and finishing their biology senior projects and presentations. That turned out to be perfect because they were scheduled to give their presentations the following Monday. So, like they had in Boston, they promised to buy Gertie and Tapeworm dinner if they would sit through and critique it on Sunday afternoon. Fortunately, neither one of them fell asleep that time.

The next morning, Cody and Bailey both gladly dressed up in their interview suits once again before heading up to Science Hill to give their findings to their Biology review board. Thankfully, the weather was pretty cool that day, so they didn't have to worry about wrinkling or sweating too much. Both fell very well prepared, and after experiencing pretty much every kind of scenario that could have been thrown at them during their medical school interviews, both proceeded to give their presentations with poise and grace. By the time they both finished, both could only smile when they each got a standing ovation from their panel of professors. That made them feel really good about how they had done on them. Of course, once they sat through several other presentations, Professor Cole pulled them aside and confided to them that theirs were the best they had seen so far and both were going to get well deserved A's on their senior projects. Naturally, they high fived each other as both were not only happy with their grades but with the fact they had already finished one of their classes for the semester a week before reading week was to begin.

And by the end of the following week, they would have three of their four classes of the semester over with. On Tuesday, they turned in their final papers in their children's literature class. And on Thursday, they turned in their final papers and gave their presentations in their EP&E advanced seminar. And on that Friday morning, they turned in their anthropology final papers. Naturally, Bailey's was about Princess Zaria while Cody chose a topic that hit close to home for him as well. No, it wasn't Galapagos Gertie but whether or not the Vikings were really the first Europeans to 'discover' the New World. Once those were turned in, all they had left to do for the semester was to study for their final in that class, and it would be the following Saturday morning. And even though this was the last thing they would ever have to do as undergrads, they still took studying for it seriously - even though both of them only needed to get above a 65 on the final to keep their A's in the class. About noon that next Saturday, when they walked out the final ever exam at Yale, they just hugged each other as they realized all they had left to do was graduate.

Of course, since their actual graduation ceremony wouldn't be until the Monday following the next weekend, they found themselves with a lot of time on their hands. For the first time in a long time, they had nothing they had to do, but that didn't seem to bother them in the least. The way they figured it, their families would begin arriving in town towards the end of the week, so decided to enjoy the down time they did have. Fortunately, come Monday at noon, Gertie and Tapeworm would be done with their last finals too, so they would have their friends to hang out with. Of course, Cody and Bailey, being them, they spent all day Sunday packing up most of their things they wouldn't need their last week on campus including their winter clothes and books. They figured that would give them less they had to do once their families were in town. Come Tuesday, while undergraduates were finishing their finals and moving out of their dorms, Bailey, Cody, Tapeworm and Gertie were living the life of leisure. One day, they headed up to Six Flags. Another day, they just spent it hanging out on the beach and relaxing. And on another night, they even went to see a minor league baseball game between the New Britain (CT) Rock Cats and the Portland (ME) Sea Dogs. Of course, they did catch some flack for rooting for the Sea Dogs, but they were the Red Sox AA team after all.

But come that next Friday morning, Cody and Bailey did finally have somewhere they did have to be – the airport in Hartford to pick up Bailey's family who were flying in that morning for the graduation festivities. And based on Cody and Bailey's past suggestion, they had been fortunate enough to find cheap fares on the same discount airline they used to fly in to Tulsa. Of course, since Hartford was a smaller airport than Boston, they did have a connecting flight in St. Louis. So, a little before noon, Bailey and Cody were waiting in the baggage claim area when they suddenly saw Clyde, Eunice, Grammy and Amy walking towards them. And immediately, Bailey ran over to them and hugged them all.

"Welcome to Connecticut!"

Grammy smiled. "Well, its about time we came up to see where you two have spent the past four years."

Bailey smiled back. "You're almost there. We still have to drive you all down to New Haven."

"How far are we from campus?"

"Oh, we're only about an hour away. Here in Hartford, we're really close to the border with Massachusetts, and New Haven is actually on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean."

"Wow...Getting to see my granddaughter graduate from college and seeing the Atlantic Ocean for the first time..." Grammy laughed. "This will be quite the trip for me."

Cody smiled. "Well, in a couple of months, you'll get to see and fly over half of the Pacific one too."

Everyone laughed before Eunice turned to him. "So, Cody, is your family already in town?"

He shook his head. "No, they won't be heading down from Boston until in the morning. Both my grandmother, my father and his girlfriend are flying into Boston tonight, and they'll all caravan down together." He checked his watch. "Besides, Zack's probably just now sitting down for his last ever college final as we speak. And Maya's last final of the semester doesn't begin until eight o'clock tonight. But, they said they'd see us all early tomorrow morning. Until then, how about we get all of your bags, and take you guys down to New Haven. We'll get you checked in to your hotel, show you our dorm and then give you a tour of the campus."

So, that's what they did. After getting their bags, everyone squeezed into Cody and Bailey's car before heading south on I-91 towards New Haven. An hour and a half later, the Pickets were checked into their rooms at the London Inn near campus. Once everyone freshened up, they all walked over to get their first looks at Cody and Bailey's dorm room suite. And when they saw it, they were all completely blown away.

Clyde just shook his head as he looked around. "This is where you two have been living for the past year? No wonder you guys didn't mind having to get come back to school after Christmas..."

Amy just nodded. "Yeah, this one is way better than your old rooms, and I thought those were pretty nice. Knowing I could have one of these when I'm a senior might have just given Yale a slight edge now."

Bailey turned to her. "Still no decision yet?"

"Not really. I have eliminated Brown, so its down to Harvard and Yale now..."

Cody smiled. "Good for you. Brown is such an ugly color..."

Eunice shook her head at her youngest daughter. "Such a rough life. Having to decided between the two best schools in the country..."

Bailey laughed. "Well, the good news for you, Amy, is that with me soon to be a graduate, you'd be considered a legacy and would have the right to request Berkeley to be your residential college. They tend to take that kind of thing seriously around here. Plus, Master Chun has told us that most incoming freshmen for next year have requested Berkeley as their first choice. Seems the other colleges aren't happy about that, but as a legacy, you'd get first priority to get in her. So, your senior year, you could end up living in a room just like this."

Amy continued looking around especially at their private bathroom. "Oh, I'll definitely keep that in mind..."

Eunice turned back to Cody and Bailey. "So, what you two been up to for the past week you've had off?"

Cody shrugged. "Nothing really. Just been taking it easy mostly and allowing ourselves to soak in the feel of officially being done with college..."

Clyde laughed. "Yeah, I heard you two say the same thing about taking it easy over your spring break, and look how that turned out for you! And Cody, welcome to the select club of men who have delivered a baby while having absolutely no idea what they were doing..."

"You have too, Clyde?"

He nodded. "Sure have. Five out of my ten daughters I had to deliver myself..." He laughed again. "By the third time, it became old hat to me. Besides, who do you think delivered your soon to be wife?"

Cody shook his head and laughed. "Well, I think when it comes time for us to have our first child, I'll leave it in the hands of professionals."

"You'll be a professional by then."

"Hopefully, in a completely different field. Once was enough for me, and I have no desire to do that for a living. I mean, getting yelled at when I didn't do anything wrong isn't high on my list of things to do..."

Clyde had to nod. "Yeah, I remember that part too. I don't blame you then for wanting to choose another field of medicine. Maybe surgery? There, your patient will be out cold and can't yell at you?"

Eunice rolled her eyes and looked at her two daughters. "Ignore them both. Until they actually have to give birth themselves, they have no room to talk whatsoever! I'm sure as scared to death as Cody was, your friend Maddie would have gladly traded places with him!"

Bailey laughed. "I think you're right about that, Momma. Well, you guys have seen our room. Come on and we'll give you the nickel tour of campus before taking you over to the dining hall so you can experience how we've been eating for the past four years. Hopefully, by then, Gertie and Tapeworm will be around so you guys can finally meet them too."

So, that's what they did. After showing them all around campus, Cody and Bailey brought them back to the dining hall at Berkeley College to give them a glimpse of just how good the food there was. Needless to say, Clyde, Eunice, Amy and Grammy were all very impressed with it and thought the food was delicious. Cody even grinned at his soon to be sister-in-law and asked if that gave Yale another leg up. She said it didn't hurt any. After dinner though, the Picketts were all worn out from their long day of traveling and sightseeing, so they were ready to head back to their hotel and call it a night. So, Cody and Bailey said they would meet them at the hotel in the morning for breakfast before bidding them a goodnight.

The next morning, they all met and had breakfast at the London Inn restaurant. And by a stroke of luck, as they were finishing up, the crew from Boston came walking into the front door of the hotel. Immediately, introductions were made, and the Picketts finally got to meet Mimi, Kurt, Maria, Maya, Todd, Tutt, Arwin, Maddie, Tevor and little Zoey. Of course, Eunice had already met Carey years before at the Tipton, and they had all met Zack, London and Moseby during their trip to Kettlecorn everyone's senior year of high school. However, Zack tried to stay as far away from Grammy Pickett as possible.

Maya turned around and looked at Zack. "What are you doing hiding behind me?"

He looked over her shoulder. "Grammy Pickett just gave me a dirty look. Its obvious she hasn't forgotten what happened four years ago..."

She laughed and teased him. "Awww...poor baby. I'll protect you from a woman who is 94 years old..."

But there wasn't a lot of time to sit around and chit chat as everyone had to get changed in their dress clothes as the Baccalaureate section that Berkeley Hall was assigned to was set to begin at 2:30 that afternoon. And once it was over, everyone was invited to a reception for the graduating seniors to be hosted by the President of the University. Once it was finally over, everyone headed out for dinner together before returning for the Boola Ball that began that evening at nine o'clock. The Boola Ball was basically a last dance for seniors and their families and friends. And since it was an open bar and everyone was in walking distance of their hotel, everyone had a fine old time. A little after midnight, everyone else headed for their hotel rooms as Cody and Bailey walked back to their dorm room.

"Okay, that was pretty tame for by Yale standards..."

Bailey laughed. "Well, I'm guessing it kind of had to be. They don't want parents to see what really goes on around here..."

Cody laughed too. "True." He paused and smiled. "You know, in less than 48 hours, we'll be college graduates."

She smiled back. "I know. And in less than 48 hours, we'll only have twelve hours to finish packing up all of our things and move out of Berkeley College for good."

"Good thing Arwin brought his work van with him. I think we can fit everything we own inside of it."

"I hope so..." She paused and grabbed his hand. "I'm just thankful that we don't have all the drama we had at our last graduation. Nobody is going to tear Yale down, and we've known for almost a year now that we're going to the same medical school together. I don't know about you, Sweetie, but I really looking forward to a graduation that I can actually enjoy and savor."

"Me too, Bails...me too."

The next morning, everyone met up in the London Inn restaurant for brunch again. Of course, the restaurant wasn't happy that such a large party would be eating for free, but with the owner of the company as well as the CEO being part of the group, they knew had to be at their best. Fortunately, with Cody and Bailey having their baccalaureate session the day before, they had some free time that early afternoon as the other colleges had theirs. But at two o'clock, they had to get in line for the Class Day exercises on Old Campus. Class Day includes the awarding of academic, artistic, and athletic prizes as well as the celebration of several other undergraduate traditions. One of said traditions was that students didn't wear their mortars, but rather any head gear of their choosing. Bailey chose to wear a baseball cap that had an interlocking 'SSH' on it while Cody chose to wear his MENSA one that he had finally gotten back from Woody. And to everyone's delight, Cody and Bailey both won several awards (with cash prizes) including them both tying for the highest GPAs in the departments of both Biology and EP&E. And once the awards were given out, it was time for the Class Day speaker to give a speech to all of the graduating seniors in attendance. Since Yale, by tradition, never had a commencement speaker unless a sitting American President was getting an honorary degree, who the Class Day speaker was was a big deal.

And once everyone saw who it was, they all turned as Carey fainted out of her chair. Clyde frowned. "Cody, is your Mom alright? Should we call for an ambulance?"

Cody just shook his head. "Nah, she'll be fine in a few minutes. I just wish we had prior warning that George Clooney would be the speaker so we could have prepped Mom for it." He turned to Zack. "Speaking of which, we need to keep an eye on her and make sure she doesn't try to make a run towards him when she comes to."

Zack just sighed. "Yeah, I just wish we had some rope to tie her to her chair..."

Of course, when it was over, Carey did actually get to meet Mr. Clooney in person, and she almost fainted again when he shook her hand. Naturally, that caused Arwin to roll his eyes. Once they were finally able to pull her away, everyone returned back to Berkeley College for a reception for its seniors hosted by Master Chun. And that was when Cody and Bailey finally got to introduce him to their families and friends.

"Everyone, this is Master Chun. He's basically taken over Moseby's role for us here at Yale. He's the one who looks after us and makes sure we don't do anything stupid..."

Master Chun laughed. "Well, its a pleasure to finally meet the families of two of Berkeley's best. But, I don't think you had anything to worry about with these two. They certainly kept things interesting, but they were a joy to have around. I'm sorry to see them both leave and head off to the evil empire that is Harvard. I just wish I had more like them around here. And even worse, I fear what our ping pong team will be like next year without them..."

Once the reception was over, everyone was happy to get back to their respective rooms to change out of their dress clothes and back into some cooler clothes. Seems New Haven was having an early summer, and no one wanted to be in dress clothes longer than they had to. And once they had all changed, Cody and Bailey took everyone out to one of their favorite restaurants around campus to give them another taste of campus life. And after they finished eating, those who wanted to stay out a little while longer headed over to the Black Bear Saloon.

Zack looked around. "Not a bad looking place. So, this is where you all came to play trivia every week, huh? And you said you all made some money, right? How much money we talking about?"

Cody just smiled. "Fortunately, the amount we made each week was just under the amount we would have to report to Uncle Sam..."

But they had to call it a night fairly early as Monday morning would be when Yale's commencement would take place. Cody and Bailey had to be on Old Campus in their caps and gowns by 9:15 that morning before the graduating class of 2015 would begin their march to Cross Campus where graduation itself would actually take place. After marching in, they took their seats and sat there for the next hour and a half while the commencement exercises took place. They wouldn't receive their diplomas there but rather at a ceremony following the commencement back in Berkeley College.

And when both of their names were called, they both had a cheering section that seemed larger than anyone else's. And all of their family and friends cheered for Gertie and Tapeworm too when their names were called. Once the ceremony was over, everyone headed back to Berkeley where Cody and Bailey officially got their diplomas. By two o'clock that afternoon, everyone was in the Berkeley dining room to have lunch one final time. And as they all sat around a table, everyone was congratulating the two graduates.

Carey wiped her eyes. "My baby boy is a college graduate!"

Zack just laughed, but Cody reminded him that it would be his turn to be the brunt of her outbursts in less than a week.

After they all ate, Clyde looked over at them. "So, what's next for you two?"

Bailey shrugged. "We have to be moved out by noon tomorrow. From there, we'll head back to Boston and move back into the Tipton. We start work again a week from today, and in less than two months, its off to Hawaii for the wedding."

"Well, I wish we didn't have to leave to head back home in a few hours, or we would help you all out in the morning."

She smiled. "Don't worry about it, Daddy. Everyone else is heading back tonight too. The only ones staying here are Zack and Maya, and Arwin is letting them bring his van back in the morning. We'll be fine."

Soon enough though, it was time for people to began heading home. About four o'clock, the Boston crew headed back east while Cody and Bailey drove the Picketts north back to the airport in Harvard. Zack and Maya went with them but made sure Grammy and Zack were not in the same vehicle together. And at the airport, everyone hugged Bailey and Cody goodbye and said they would see them again real soon. With one final congratulation, everyone headed through security so they could go to their gate. Returning back to their cars, the four decided to grab some dinner in Hartford before heading back to New Haven. Once back, Zack and Maya returned back to their hotel room while Cody and Bailey returned to their dorm room to finish packing up everything.

By eleven o'clock the next morning, everything they owned was packed up and loaded in the back of Arwin's van. And then, Cody and Bailey had the task or rearranging the furniture in their room back to the way they found it when they moved in. Once that was done, they did one last walk around their suite. Bailey turned to Cody.

"It feels kind of funny knowing that we are about to leave New Haven for the final time..."

Cody grabbed her hand and smiled at her. "It won't be the last time. I'm sure we'll be back again someday if for nothing more than a reunion. Plus, we did tell Gertie and Tapeworm we'd come back next year for The Game. Besides, I'm sure one day the university will want to bring you back to honor you for your contributions to the field of pediatrics."

She smiled at him. "Maybe. I just I wouldn't trade these past four years for anything in the world. A lot has happened to us while we've been here, both good and bad. But, in the past four years, I think we've both grown up even more, and I think we're leaving here much stronger people as well as a much stronger couple."

"I would agree with that..." He smiled at her again. "And if possible, even more in love too.."

She leaned in and kissed him. "I think so too..."

"Unfortunately, as they say, life must go on. And even if they didn't, Yale is going to kick us out in about five minutes. You about ready to get out of here?"

Bailey nodded and smiled. "Yeah, because this time, we're leaving together."

They were about to leave when they heard a knock at their door. So, for the final time, they went over to answer it and found Gertie and Tapeworm standing there.

"Good. You two are still here. We were hoping to catch you before you left to head back to Boston."

"You caught us. You two about ready to head out too?"

Gertie nodded. "Yeah, we just got back from dropping our stuff off back at the storage place." She smiled. "Unlike you two, we'll actually be back her next year..."

Tapeworm smiled as he teased them. "Hopefully, our neighbors next year will be a lot more fun than you two were..."

Cody laughed. "Probably wouldn't take much..."

Gertie rolled her eyes. "Ignore him. I hope you both know how much we're going to miss you two. Its going to weird being here at grad school next year without you guys across the hall. In the past three and a half years, seeing you guys almost everyday has become a routine for me."

Bailey smiled. "Well, we have phones and webcams, so you can still see us whenever you want. Plus, you guys are going to see us in less than two months for the wedding."

"I know, but it won't really hit home until next fall when you guys aren't here..." She laughed. "Without you two here, I'll probably have to listen to him rant and rave about my schedule..."

Cody laughed. "I wouldn't doubt that. But like I just told Bailey, we'll be back here to crash with you guys for The Game next year. And you guys will always have a place to crash in Boston too whenever you want."

"We just may take you up on that."

From the open window, they heard a loud honk, and Cody just shook his head. "That was Zack telling us to get a move on..."

Tapeworm laughed. "Well, we'll let you guys go then. We'll definitely see you guys in Boston for the 4th."

And with that, Cody and Bailey closed and locked all of their windows before heading downstairs and turning in their keys to the front desk. When they walked outside, they headed over to their car parked behind Arwin's van. And once they got in and started it up, Cody turned to Bailey.

"Well, I guess its time to say goodbye to Yale and hello to Harvard..."

_Boston_

About three o'clock that Tuesday afternoon, everyone finally returned back to Boston. Fortunately, Arwin told them there was plenty of storage space down in the basement of the Tipton for them to store their furniture and books, so they began the process of carrying everything down there. Of course, while they were down in the basement, Bailey and Maya caught their first glimpses of the Arwenstein creature, and it almost scared them to death. But as quickly as they could, Cody and Zack calmed them down and explained the story behind it. Once they were assured that it was no longer in a working condition, both were fascinated by it. However, they had to get back to moving everything else down there. Once they were done there, it was time to begin taking the rest of their things back up to the suite on the 23rd floor. That evening, everyone went out to dinner once again as Mimi, Kurt and Maria had all decided to spend the week in Boston and still be there for Zack's graduation on Sunday. And it wasn't a major inconvenience as both Kurt and Marie had work they could be doing for their respective companies while in the Boston area. But for the 21 year olds, the next couple of days were spent taking it easy before heading back to work the following week. Before that though, they had to go through a second weekend of graduation activities at Boston University.

On Friday, the BU festivities officially began. From 4:00 to 6:00 PM that evening, there was a Senior Champagne Reception for graduates and their families to be followed by the 23rd Annual BU Comedy tonight hosted by Jeffrey Ross, a nationally known comedian and alumni of BU. Every one had fun with it as they realized the events for Saturday would a little more formal. That day, there was the Celebration 2015 Dinner for all of the graduates and their families from 5:00 until 7:00 followed by the 101st annual BU Night at the Pops concert. While Zack and Maya didn't particularly care for it, everyone else seemed to love it.

Sunday was when all of the excitement would happen. At 9:00 AM, the School of Hospitality Management had its own smaller convocation where Zack would actually receive his diploma. And there wasn't time to mill around afterwards as everyone had move quickly to get to the BU baccalaureate service that began at 11:00 AM. And once it was over, everyone had to get moving again on to Nickerson Field, BU's football stadium, for the university wide commencement at 1:00. Unlike Yale, Boston University would be having a commencement speaker, and that year, they had chosen quite possibly the university's most famous or infamous alumni depending on how you viewed him - the renowned shock jock and King of All Media, Howard Stern. And to everyone's surprise and delight, he actually gave a very good speech to the speech - even if some parts of it would have come with a R rating. They guessed he had been on satellite radio for too long without having to worry about censorship that he had almost forgotten how to hold his tongue.

And like less than a week before, Zack heard a large section cheering for him when he walked across the stage to shake the hand of the president of the university. Once the university wide commencement was over, he ran into Amanda there with her friends and family.

He hugged her. "Hey! Congratulations on graduating!"

She hugged him back. "You too!" Once she pulled back and grinned. "Who would have ever thought we would be standing here today after our very first day at Beacon Hill?"

Zack laughed. "Definitely not me! Its been a pretty wild four years, hasn't it?"

"You're telling me! If you would have told me that day how much my life would have changed in the next four years, I probably wouldn't have believed you."

"You and me both, but I definitely won't complain about how everything has turned out."

"Me either..." Amanda smiled. "But it will be nice to have classes with an old friend again next fall."

Zack paused. "Well, you might, but you won't be having any with me..."

She just gave him a look. "Did you decide not to go for your MBA after all?"

He shook his head. "Not exactly. I kind of sort of got accepted into..." And he mumbled the rest.

"What was that?"

Zack coughed. "Cough, cough...Harvard...cough, cough..."

Amanda's eyes went wide. "Did you just say Harvard?"

"Yeah...I originally wasn't going to go, but everyone's finally convinced me to give it a shot..."

She laughed again. "Well, congratulations again! From Beacon Hill to Harvard – that's quite the climb you've made there, Zack."

"I know..." He laughed too. "But if its too much for me, I'll be transferring right back here to BU with you!"

"Good, but part of me hopes to never see you on this campus ever again...well, except when you come back here to see Maya of course."

"Of course."

She looked over her shoulder. "Look, I need to be getting back to my family now, but give me a call sometime this summer, and we'll all hang out..." She paused and teased him. "...well, as long as you aren't drinking. I have no desire to ever have to put up with that again."

"Yeah, no worries about that again. It may have taken me twice, but I've learned my lesson."

"Glad to hear that. And I hope that once you're among the snobby elite of Harvard, you won't forget about us little people here..."

"I won't. Besides, I'll still be in town..." He grinned. "And I'll still need all the help I can get to convert Maya to the Nation and away from the evil Yankees..."

Maya shook her head and sighed. "I don't think he's ever going to give up on that..."

Amanda laughed. "Nor should he!"

Later that night, once Zack was able to finally take off his cap and gown, everyone headed out for another celebration dinner. And Kurt even said he was buying.

Mimi just smirked. "Well, finally you do something I can get behind..."

Once they got to the restaurant and after they had ordered, Kurt ordered a round of champagne for everyone.

"I'd like to make a toast to my two boys and very soon to be daughter-in-law for graduating college this past week. I'm prouder of you all than a man should be entitled to be. And Maya, I look forward to toasting you in a couple of years as well when you get your bachelors and doctorate degrees at the same time. You all should be very proud of your academic achievements. And I would like to further wish you all well as you all continue with your educations here in Boston. So, if everyone would please raise their glasses, let us toast the graduates!"

After a couple of 'Here, Here's', everyone took a drink of their champagne. And once they did, Mimi raised her glass then.

"My turn now. I'd also like to toast everyone because in a few short months, I'll be able to brag to all of my friends that I'll have two grandsons and a granddaughter at Harvard. And in a few short years, I'll be able brag that there will be three doctors and a future king of business in the family. Like Kurt said, I couldn't be any prouder of you all than I am right now."

Carey held up her glass. "I guess that leaves me." She shook her head and sighed. "I can still remember Zack and Cody when they were babies, and now here they are both college grads..." She paused. "And thank you Zack for actually graduating today. You are now 2 for 3 in graduating on days that you actually were supposed to! And I'm grateful that I'll have everyone back here in Boston with me again from now on. And not only that, but in less than two months, Bailey will officially join our family..." She paused again before smiling and teasing her soon to be daughter-in-law. "You still sure you want to do that?"

Bailey smiled and teased her right back. "Well, everything is already planned and paid for by now. Probably a little late to back out now, so I guess I'll still go through with it..."

Everyone laughed before Carey raised her glass again. "Here's to the next chapters in all of your lives. May the be as successful for you as the ones you have just now closed."

___To be Continued..._

**AN: I was going to give this episode a clever title, but the actual titles of both of the SLOZAC and SLOD graduation episodes were 'Graduation', so who am I to break tradition? Anyways, thank you everyone for the continued positive reviews. As for the ones who appear to be...butt hurt by my stories, I ask the same thing some of my other reviewers have asked - why bother to read them? The funny thing is I bet they haven't even read any of my stories and just like to spout off to feel important. Oh well, any way, with graduation now now, we're moving into the final five chapters. Just remember, the final episode will be a three part one.**


	23. Coming Full Circle

_Episode 23_

_"Coming Full Circle"_

_I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did._

_Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them._

_Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves._

_And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so..._

_Boston_

With both of Yale's and BU's graduations now done and out of the way, everyone was free to get on with the early part of their summers. For Cody and Bailey, it was returning back to work once again the Tipton Clinic the Monday after Zack's graduation. But this summer was going to be a little different for them there. Now that they were college graduates on the precipice of beginning medical school, they found their duties and responsibilities were going to be increased. The Tipton Clinic wasn't stupid as they realized they had two soon to be Harvard Medical School students that they were helping to shape how they would eventually become doctors. Besides, for the past several years, the higher ups had been keeping their eye on Cody and Bailey to see if they were candidates to eventually join the clinic full time in the future. And to even be considered for that was a huge honor for both of them.

For Zack and Maya, there was no rest for the weary as they too had to be back at work the day after BU's graduation as well. Of course, Zack had no objections with the automatic raise he got for now being a college graduate. In fact, he was flat our giddy by it and in a moment of jubilation, told everyone he was taking them out to dinner to celebrate that fact. When he got the check, however, he wasn't as happy. For Maya, she returned to working at the fit&rec center about forty hours a week while she continued to take summer school courses. But, it was the fact that she was taking classes that summer that caused Bailey to become alarmed.

"Oh my gosh! You aren't going to have to miss any classes to come to our wedding are you?"

Maya just smiled. "Well, not technically. This summer, I'll be taking both SAR HP 504, Clinical Athletic Training III during the first session and then SAR HP 505 - Clinical Athletic Training IV during the second one. Ordinarily, the first week of the second summer session would coincide with the week we're all going to be in Hawaii, but I know the professor pretty well, and we've worked out an arrangement. Those classes are more like internships where I'll be taking a page out of Zack's book and getting credit for doing my job. But, there is the one day a week where we'd meet for an in class discussion. That term, the scheduled time is Wednesdays from 1:00 to 3:00 in the afternoon. But Professor Thompson is going to bring her webcam to class that day so I can participate in the discussion from Hawaii..." She paused and laughed. "And that works out perfectly because that will be from 7:00 to 9:00 o'clock in the morning out in Maui. I'll just get up early and get my class out of the way before breakfast. Plus, I'll have built up so many hours as it is that I'll have more than enough to take a week off..."

Bailey sighed in relief. "Thank goodness. I didn't want you to fall behind because of Cody and me."

She laughed again. "Well, after all you two have helped me get ahead in some of my other classes, I wouldn't have blamed you in the least. Besides, I missed the first trip to Hawaii when you and Cody finally got together the first time, so there is no way I was going to miss this one..." She smiled. "Plus, I wouldn't miss your wedding for the world..."

Bailey smiled too. "Thanks. And who know? Maybe in a few years, we'll be sisters-in-law..."

"I'm hoping you're right about that. But I not going to worry about it until I see Zack get down on one knee..." She paused and laughed. "Though, I'm pretty I'll have a good idea about when he is ready to propose."

"You do? How do you know that?"

"Well, I've overheard Zack and Cody talking back over spring break. Cody was teasing Zack that he was now injured with his bruised hand, so maybe it was time to propose. Zack responded that he had said he would know it was time when he seriously injured himself and that a bruise wasn't a serious injury. From what I gathered, he had made some comment about that when he realized Cody proposed to you from his hospital bed and Trevor proposed to Maddie while on crutches with a torn ACL..."

Bailey laughed. "I can definitely see that. Well, I guess Zack just needs to hurt himself then, and he'll be all set. I mean, he does already have the ring for when the time is right..."

Maya just looked at her funny. "He does? What are you talking about, Bailey?"

Bailey nodded. "Yeah, he does." She held out her hand and grinned. "Cody and Zack aren't the only ones around here that are twins. This ring has its own twin too. Except it has rubies where mine has emeralds." She paused. "You didn't know anything about that?"

Maya's eyes were wide in surprise. "I had no idea..."

Quickly, Bailey filled Maya in on the story about the rings that Cody had told her, and Maya's eyes went even wider. "Wow...I know he was getting an inheritance from over in Sweden, but he just said it was an old family heirloom of some kind..."

"Well, technically, it is. But, now you know that a ring won't be an obstacle for him when he's ready. And if I may say so myself, I've been watching the way you two are with each other the past couple of years. I wouldn't be surprised if Zack proposes sooner than later." Bailey paused and laughed. "But, if you want me to hurry things up a little for you, I can...accidentally trip him down some stairs..."

Maya shook her head and laughed too. "I appreciate the offer, but I'm happy with the way things are right now..." She paused. "In fact, there is another step I was thinking about taking in our relationship first..."

"Oh yeah? What's that?"

"You remember the conversation we had about year ago right after Zack left to head back to the ship?"

Bailey paused to think, and that's when she suddenly remembered. "Oh yeah..." She gave Maya a look. "Are you saying...?"

"I think I am. I mean, I'm not going to push for anything to happen, but if it does, I won't back down or run away from it."

"That's understandable. But, if you are seriously thinking about it now , I think you should come with me next week when I go into get my birth control shot. Sounds like you might need one of your own."

Maya nodded. "Probably a good idea. No offense to Maddie and I love little Zoey to death, but I'm not ready to be a Mom myself just yet. For the past couple months, I've begun to wonder if she is getting any sleep at all."

Bailey laughed. "Probably not much, but then again, she shouldn't be surprised if she's not. I mean, look at who she named her daughter after. She was just asking for trouble by doing that..."

_Kettlecorn_

After May finally gave way to June, it was time for Cody and Bailey to make their one scheduled trip back to Kettlecorn that summer. Since Mother's Day coincided with Yale's graduation, Bailey was able to spend the day with both her mother and soon to be mother-in-law. And the plan had been to return back to Kettlecorn for Father's Day, but Clyde suggested she and Cody come a couple weekends early. It seems Bailey wasn't the only Pickett girl to be graduating that year, and on Saturday, June 6th, Amy would be graduating from Kettlecorn High. So, on the 5th, after finishing work for the day, Cody and Bailey headed for the airport to catch their flight to Tulsa. And by ten o'clock local time, they parked their rental car once again in front of the Pickett family farm.

They got to briefly visit with Bailey's family before everyone had to call it a night. So that the graduation ceremony wouldn't interfere with prime farming time, it was going to be held at nine o'clock the next morning. And the next morning, like had happened at Yale, there was a huge rooting section for Amy as she was introduced as valedictorian and once again when she crossed the stage to get her diploma. Once the ceremony was over (and it was fairly quickly as there were only twenty-two people graduating), everyone headed back to the farm for a celebratory lunch. After they ate, Clyde pulled Cody outside to get his help with something while the ladies sat around the kitchen table. And Bailey couldn't help but tease her youngest sister.

"Now, don't go crazy tonight at the big graduation party you guys are having..."

Amy rolled her eyes. "I won't. I'll probably go as wild as you did for yours..."

Bailey laughed. "Trust me, after both of my graduations, I had to pack my things to get ready to move. Unlike you, my high school was being torn down around us as we were having our ceremony. That's why I was able to enjoy mine from Yale so much more..."

"Yeah, yeah. I'm just glad its almost time for me to head off to college myself..."

Bailey paused. "Speaking of which...you only have about two months before you're supposed to be beginning freshman orientation. Have you made a decision yet on which school that will be at?"

Amy grinned. "I just about have. I do tend to favor one over the other, and I was real close to making my decision until I then remembered something you and Cody once told me."

Grammy laughed. "Uh oh. I think I'm a little worried now..."

Bailey shook her head at her grandmother before turning her attention back to her sister. "And just what did we tell you that you remembered?"

"About how much Harvard and Yale despise each other and love to steal students away from the other. I'm smart enough to know they both view me as the bright rural candidate from Kansas that would look good for the sake of diversity..."

"Yeah, we know what that's like. Cody and I think that's how Zack got into Harvard's Business School. But tell me, how are you using that to your advantage?"

Amy laughed. "Oh, its pretty easy. Once I finally got one of them to offer me a financial aid package, I could begin playing them off of each other. When I happened to mention to the other that their most hated rival had offered me money, that school came back with an offer to trump it. And when the first school to offer me money found out their most hated rival had offered more, they decided to up their offer. I'm going to act like the poor confused country bumpkin going back and forth between them until I see which one ends up offering me the most money..."

Bailey laughed too. "Wow! I knew you were devious, but that's pure genius. Hey, go for it though. Either way, I think you'll love the experience of the school you choose. At Yale, you can look up Master Chun at Berkeley. He's a good man who will watch out for you, and of course you remember Gertie and Tapeworm. And at Harvard, you'll have me and Cody just across the river from you."

"I know. Like I said before, I'm still trying to figure out if that will be a good thing or not..."

"Well, just remember that having family around can be very comforting. Thankfully, I had Cody with me, but it doesn't mean I still didn't miss this place. And even though you don't like farming, you will too, Amy."

"We'll see. I know you guys get bad winter storms up there, but I'll take those any day over a tornado..."

Bailey had to nod. "I can understand that. You know...its kind of funny. I guess I take it for granted that the farm now looks like it always did. You would never know that it had almost been destroyed by a tornado four years ago. But I guess it makes sense. It was the same way after the floods, the mud and the locusts..."

Eunice smiled. "Yeah, it always does seem to be able to bounce back." She paused and laughed. "But I do think Cody did have a point about something four years ago – everything that has happened here does sound like something out of the old testament."

Grammy laughed too. "Well, its a good thing nothing has happened to the first born sons around here." She paused. "Though, with a family of nothing but daughters, it wouldn't have had any real effect around this house."

Bailey laughed too. "I guess not. And I know it sounds bad, but if something like that did happen, I would be grateful that Zack blocked Cody from coming out first." She paused too. "Though, I'm not too sure Maya would be happy about it."

Grammy shook her head and scowled. "I might be..."

"Grammy! Its been four years. He said he was sorry. Isn't it time to let it go?"

"I'll think about it..."

Eunice decided to try to change the subject and turned her attention back to Bailey. "So, I guess this is it, huh? This is the last time you'll be in Kettlecorn as Bailey Pickett. The next time you're here, you'll be Mrs. Bailey Martin."

She smiled at her mother. "Yeah, I will."

"Is everything ready to go next month?"

"Yeah, everything is all set. We'll have our final fittings the Tuesday after we get to Hawaii, and the staff of the resort is handling all of the decorations and set up. All that's left for us to do is pack for it and catch the plane out on the 5th of July. Now, we're still scheduled to meet you all in Los Angeles, right?"

"Right. I think that was a good idea London had. With everyone coming from all four corners of the country, it makes sense for everyone to meet in one place before crossing the Pacific. Now, I have to tell you, everyone around here is getting really excited about this. For a lot of our relatives around here, it will be there first plane trips and first time seeing the Pacific Ocean." She paused. "Plus, there is another reason..."

"What's that?"

Eunice couldn't help but to laugh. "Well, people want to be out of town to avoid the train wreck that is going to happen here in Kettlecorn on the same day you get married..."

Bailey frowned in confusion. "What train wreck?"

Grammy laughed. "Seems word of Moose's visit up to New Haven this past Valentine's Day has somehow gotten out around here. Now, I'm not saying who let the cat out of the bag, but a lot of people know you basically laughed in his face and threw him out of your dorm. Unfortunately for Moose, it seems Betty Lou found out about it too, and she was madder than a wet hen. Word from her grandmother is that she's going to dump him at the altar and walk out on him in front of everyone..."

Bailey winced. "Ouch. That would be humiliating..."

"Oh yeah. He'll be the laughing stock of these parts for a long time. Honey, I'm just be glad you got yourself a good feller who I know will be there with bells on ready to marry you."

She smiled. "I know, Grammy. I can't wait for it either. People keep asking me if I'm getting nervous or beginning to get cold feet, but I couldn't be further from that. If anything, I'm getting anxious wishing it would hurry up and get here. I've been looking forward to this day for over two years now..." She paused and laughed. "Oh, who am I kidding? I've been looking forward to this day since high school."

Eunice smiled. "And we couldn't be any happier for you, Bailey. Now, I admit, when you said you had fallen in love with a big city boy, I was a little concerned. But once I finally met Cody, I could tell instantly how much you meant to him. Heck, he dropped everything and came all the way here because he was worried about you. And I'm no dummy, I remember seeing that kiss. That was a true love's kiss."

Bailey smiled again. "Thank you, Momma. It definitely was."

About that time, the kitchen door opened up, and Cody and Clyde walked in dripping with sweat and laughing. Eunice looked up.

"What's so funny?"

Clyde just shook his head. "Well, if Cody decides medical school isn't what he was hoping it would be, he can have a career as a satellite dish installer. All of my other sons-in-laws liked mine so much, they bought ones of their own. But they waited until Cody came back here to have him install them. My boy here got all six of them done in less than three hours. Heck, some of their neighbors asked if he could help them out if they bought ones too..."

Eunice just glared at her husband. "You've had your daughter's fiance out on roofs in this sweltering heat all afternoon this close to their wedding. Clyde, just be glad he didn't fall off and hurt himself!"

"Nah, no worries about that. Besides, I think we're getting close to making Cody a half way country boy now..."

"Why do you say that?"

Clyde laughed again. "Well, he's been dropping some 'y'all's all day and when this bird buzzed us on one of the roofs, he practically shouted out 'what the feathers?'..." He looked at his daughter and winked. "Couple more years, and I might just be able to make a farmer out of him yet..."

On Sunday afternoon, Cody and Bailey had one final lunch with the Picketts before they had to be heading towards the airport in Tulsa. And once they had eaten and loaded up their rental car, it was time to say goodbye to everyone.

"Now, we'll see you all again four weeks from today. And when we do see you, it will be in Los Angeles as we'll all be getting ready to board a plane for Hawaii."

One of Bailey's brother-in-law grinned. "Yeah, and in five weeks, Cody will officially be one of the few, the proud..."

That caught Cody off guard. "The marines?"

He laughed. "Nope, we're an even tougher group of guys – we'll all be men who are strong and crazy enough to be married to a Pickett girl!"

_Boston_

Once Cody and Bailey returned back to Boston, they resumed their usual summer routine. Everyday, they went to work, and on Wednesday evenings, they even played in a sand volleyball league at a new sports bar down the street from the Tipton. It had been Zack's idea for a way for everyone to hang out together. At any given time, they had to have three guys and three girls on the court. So, in addition to Zack, Maya, Bailey and Cody, they had invited Amanda, Jake, Maddie, Trevor, London and Todd to join them. All of them readily agreed except for London who reminded Zack she hated doing PE while they were on the boat. While she remembered she was actually pretty decent at volleyball, she much preferred to just sit back and watch Todd in action. And Maddie thought it would be a good way for her to get exercise to help her shed some of her baby weight. Naturally, her parents were more than happy to babysit little Zoey those evenings.

For Cody, he soon found an extra benefit on those Wednesdays. As he was fearing what Zack had planned for his bachelor party, he figured having a drink or two after they finished playing would help build up his tolerance if only a little. And, to his surprise, he actually found something that he somewhat liked the taste of in hard apple cider. Of course, Zack tried to give him a hard time about drinking what he perceived to be a wussy drink, but Cody just smirked back at him when he pointed out his drink had a higher percentage of alcohol than the beer Zack was drinking. When everyone laughed at that, Zack dropped the topic quickly. And while everyone was having fun, there team wasn't that good. By the Wednesday before the 4th of July weekend, they were barely above five hundred. Fortunately though, their bye week coincided with the week they would be gone to Hawaii.

But Cody and Bailey's favorite hobby of the summer was heading over to their new place every Friday after work to watch it continue to get closer and closer to being finished. And the week before the 4th of July, it was really starting to take shape. The way they figured it (and told to them by the contractor), they would be able to move in the weekend after they got back from their wedding. That would give them close to two weeks to get themselves settled in before they left for their honeymoon.

By the time Thursday, July 2 finally arrived, everyone was looking forward to having the next day off for the 4th of July holiday. And that evening, everyone was gathered in the suite on the 23rd floor taking it easy and staying cool. Well, almost. London was there going over the final itinerary with everyone so they knew what to expect to happen the following week. And as she was droning on and on, they were saved when they heard a knock at the door. Bailey immediately got up to answer it, and she was surprised to see Gertie and Tapeworm, Marcus and Melanie, and Woody and Addison all standing there smiling back at her.

"What are you guys doing here? I didn't think you all were getting in to Boston until sometime tomorrow?"

Marcus laughed. "As if we'd miss all the fun tomorrow..."

She frowned. "Tomorrow? What's going on tomorrow?"

Zack laughed. "Oh, I guess it slipped Cody's mind, and I forgot to remind him of it. Tomorrow will be Cody's day long bachelor party..."

London finished for him. "...as well as Bailey's wedding shower!"

Cody looked at Bailey and winced. "My bad. I do remember Zack telling me about that now, but in my defense, that was right before he dropped the bomb on me about not going to Harvard. I guess in my attempts at tough love I completely forgot all about that. Sorry, Sweetie."

"Its okay." Bailey turned her attention to Zack. "Now, I hope you know that..."

Zack rolled his eyes and cut her off. "Don't worry. I got the list you two sent me, so I didn't plan anything too bad. Besides, remember that the rest of us have girlfriends that we don't want to tick off either."

Cody turned to his brother. "So, what do you have planned for tomorrow exactly?"

"Well, against my better judgment, Woody wanted us to get up early to go play paintball. So, we'll all be leaving here at 6 AM. Once we're done there, we have a few tee times to go play golf at London's father's country club. Don't worry though, they'll fit us for clubs and provide those to us when we get there. After that, we'll all head back here to grab showers before we all head back out to go to the Red Sox and Royals game tomorrow night. And if that wasn't enough for you, we have a few tables reserved at a comedy club for a late night show featuring Boston's very own Louis C.K."

Cody was impressed. "Wow! That actually sounds like a lot of fun. I guess we all need to go to bed early tonight. And I'm pretty sure we'll all probably be exhausted by the end tomorrow night too."

Zack grinned. "And probably a little drunk too. Codester, we're going to help you wave goodbye to the single life with a bang!"

Bailey paused. "Who all is we?"

"Well, Cody and me, Woodchuck, TW, Marcus, Todd, Trevor, and Bob, and then Dad is supposed to be flying in tomorrow earlier enough to join us for the evening's festivities..."

London spoke up. "And while the guys are doing those guy things, all of us ladies will be spending the morning getting pampered downstairs in the spa. After that, we'll then spend the afternoon lounging around the pool with frozen drinks before we all return to my penthouse for your wedding shower. With some of the things I have planned as maid of honor, it should be a lot of fun." She paused and laughed. "Of course, once Carey calls it a night, we'll give you the gifts that we didn't think you'd want to open up around your soon to be mother-in-law."

Cody and Bailey just looked at each other again and shrugged. "Alright, those sound a lot better than we had feared." She turned to Tapeworm, Woody and Marcus. "But I'm entrusting you three to make sure Cody doesn't do anything stupid or Zack doesn't do anything to cause anyone to go to jail! I'm getting married in a week, and I don't want to have to bail anyone out beforehand!"

With everyone now there, they all decided to head down the street to grab some dinner as a group. And after they spent the next couple of hours catching up with each other, everyone decided to call it a night fairly early as they all had long days ahead of them the next day. And while they guys were up and gone early, the ladies got to sleep in before letting themselves get pampered the next morning at the spa. About four o'clock that afternoon, the ladies returned from the pool and were just sitting around the suite taking it easy and chatting. And that's when the door opened, and Zack and Cody walked inside. Cody had a scowl on his face, and everyone was pretty sure why.

"Ummm...Sweetie...are you aware that you have a large glob of red paint on the back of your head?"

Cody sighed. "I didn't until the 15th hole when the beverage cart attendant brought it to my attention." He glared at Zack. "Seems everyone thought it was a good idea to take bets to see how long I would go without noticing I had red paint in my hair. Anyways, we all came back to grab showers before heading back out again. And, it turns out its about 95 degrees outside, so I might have to end up cutting my undershirt off of me...again."

Zack just grinned. "Come on, Bro. Don't look at it as red paint but rather crimson paint! I figured we should go ahead and show some early school spirit..."

Cody just glared at him again before heading off to his room to get ready to take a shower. Zack just shrugged before heading off to do the same. And a few minutes later, he walked back out of the suite to head over to use the shower in Carey's suite. The ladies just looked at each other and began laughing. About twenty minutes later, there was another knock at the door.

Addison sighed. "Let me guess. Its Woody coming down to borrow my key to our room..."

London grinned. "Nope, I don't think so. Unless I've missed my guess, its the special guests I brought in for today. Bailey, go answer the door..."

Shrugging, Bailey did go answer it, and for the second time in 24 hours, she was suprised to see who was standing there. "Momma? Daddy? Grammy? Amy? What are you guys doing here in Boston? I thought we were meeting you all in Los Angeles on Sunday?"

Eunice smiled at her daughter. "Well, we had a small change of plans..."

Clyde nodded. "Yeah, I figured if I was going to have two of my daughters living up here in Boston, I wanted to check this place out for myself. So, we called London, and she flew us up here this morning."

Bailey looked at him in confusion. "Two daughters? I don't understand..."

Amy smiled. "The other one would be me. I finally decided that I would attend Harvard."

Grammy grinned too. "Plus London told us about the wedding shower everyone was going to have for you tonight, and we definitely didn't want to miss that..."

Clyde sighed. "Which means I need to find myself something to do then. No offense, Bailey, but hanging around all of you for your shower don't seem like much fun to me..."

At that exact moment, Cody came out of the bathroom freshly showered, dressed and without any red/crimson paint in his hair. And when he saw his future in-laws standing there in the living room, he was taken aback too. Quickly, Bailey filled him in on what he had missed while he was in the shower, and that's when Cody had an idea.

"Well, Clyde, if you want, you're more than welcome to head out with us. I know he's not you most favorite person, but we have Mr. Tipton's box for the Red Sox game in a couple of hours. The Sox are playing your Royals after all. And then afterwards, we have tables reserved at a comedy club here in town. We'd love to have you join us."

Clyde couldn't help but laugh. "You sure you want your soon to be father-in-law to come along on your bachelor party night?"

Cody laughed too. "I'd be honored if you would. Besides, we could always use one more person to help keep Zack in line. Plus, I have to figure it would be a lot more fun than hanging around here. No offense, ladies..."

"Well, you do make a good point. I think I'd rather go with you guys..."

A few minutes later, Zack returned to the suite too, and he was a little surprised to find out they were going to have one more joining them for the rest of the bachelor party. And when Bailey's family headed to their room to freshen up, he pulled his brother to the side.

"Dude! Are you insane? What are you thinking bringing your future father-in-law with us tonight?"

Cody grinned again. "Call it further insurance that you don't have something else planned that you haven't told me about yet..."

Zack just rolled his eyes. "Man, you sure do know how to ruin a good time, don't you?"

Soon enough though, the Picketts returned back to the sute, and a few minutes later, all of the guys headed back out on to the streets of Boston. And while they were making their way to Fenway, the ladies all headed up to London's suite for Bailey's shower. London even had the little soiree catered, and everyone sat around having a good time as the margaritas continued to flow. And when it came time to gift giving portion of the festivities, Bailey was thankful that most of them were relatively tame. However, due to that and the several frozen concoctions she had already consumed, Carey began laughing. "You know, I expected there to be a few more...I don't know...racy gifts to have been given."

London shrugged. "Well, we were going to wait to do that after you left, Carey. You know, all things considered..."

Carey kept laughing. "Hey, bring them on then! My friends had the same concerns about me opening the gifts at my wedding shower around Kurt's mother. Turns out, she probably gave me the most risque one of all. Besides, Bailey and Cody are both 21 and going to be married in a week. The time for me to worry about things like are well in the past."

So, with Carey's blessing, several more gifts were brought out of London's closet. And every time Bailey opened one, she got all kinds of whoops and hollers as she held up what was inside. The first couple of times, it caused her to blush, but by the end of the evening, she was cracking jokes with everyone else. However, by midnight, all of the ladies (with the exception of Amy of course), were beginning to feel the effects of the margaritas and were ready to call it a night and/or pass out.

The next morning, Bailey gradually woke up and immediately reached out to pull Cody closer to her. But, he wasn't there which surprised her. Frowning, she got out of bed and walked out into the main part of the suite. And what she saw almost made her bust out laughing. Zack and Cody were both passed on the couch. From the looks of it, they had passed out where they had fallen. A few minutes later, Maya came out of her room and saw Bailey.

"Have you seen Zack?"

Bailey just nodded towards the couch. And when she saw the sight before here, Maya just shook her head.

"Been there before. Unfortunately, I know that they're both going to be feeling last night all day today."

"I think we all will. I think that last batch London made was a tad bit strong."

At that moment, Cody and Zack both began to stir and finally opened their eyes. Both sat up and began looking around trying to get their bearings. Zack paused and looked at his brother.

"Why are we on the couch?"

Cody sighed. "Because we both sat down on it to catch our breath when we got back up here. For some reason, we thought taking the stairs would make us sweat out the alcohol in our systems and lessen any potential hangovers. I don't think it worked..."

"Oh yeah, I remember that now..."

Bailey laughed. "So, what time did you guys get in this morning? I know it was after midnight because that's when I...went to bed."

"About three o'clock this morning. We got out of the comedy club about one thirty and began walking towards the subway spot when we noticed one of those all night bowling alleys. For some reason, we all thought it sounded like a good idea to go bowl a couple games." Cody paused. "Well, except me. After the first game, I was seeing three different lanes when I tried to focus. So, for the safety of those around us, I sat the second one out..."

Maya laughed this time. "Sounds like you all had a big day and an even bigger night."

Zack nodded. "I think we did. Its all kind of a blur right now..."

Bailey smiled. "Well, between bowling and golf, how did you do, Cody?"

He paused. "I think I had a 84 and a 221."

Maya was impressed at hearing that. "Whoa! That's amazing! I didn't realize you were so good at those, Cody..."

Cody shook his head. "I'm not. I got the 84 in bowling and the 221 in golf..."

She winced. "Oh...ouch."

"Yeah. The beer didn't help my bowling any, and golf is a lot harder in reality than those video games make it out to be..."

Zack couldn't help but laugh though. "Well, you don't have to worry about Cody walking on sand any more. He spent more time in the sand yesterday than David Hasselhoff used to..."

Bailey laughed. "Well, we're supposed to meet my family for lunch in an hour, Sweetie. And then, we're going to take them over to Harvard's main campus so they can check out Amy's future dorm. Plus, I told them we'd stop by our new place to show it to them too. Then, I told them we show them some of the sights of Boston before the big fireworks show tonight."

Cody just nodded and sighed. "Works for me. I just need a hot shower and some Tylenol. Looks like I'm looking at two straight long days..."

She went over to help him up. "We all are. Come on, I think I better join you to make sure you don't pass out in there on me." She grinned. "Besides, just wait till you see some of the things I got yesterday. I think you'll really like them..."

That caught his attention and perked him up. "Oh yeah?"

By noon, everyone was feeling somewhat better, but they all still had sunglasses on as they headed out of the hotel. And for the first times in their lives, Clyde, Eunice and Grammy got to ride the subway. Once over at Harvard, they were able to get a tour of Amy's future dorm and campus, and while it wasn't as nice as the new Berkeley College, it wouldn't be that bad. From there, they all headed to the Longwood Medical Area to show off Cody and Bailey's almost finished new home. While it still needed to be painted and the appliances installed, everyone was extremely impressed with it.

"So, all of this space for just the two of you?"

Bailey nodded. "Yeah. And according to London, this is smallest row house in the complex."

"Wow..."

Amy smiled. "All I know is I claim dibbs on that guest room on the first floor whenever I need a break away from the dorms!"

Cody shrugged. "Fine with us. Actually, with you in town now too, you're more than welcome to join us for dinner too whenever you want."

"Don't tempt me like, Bro."

Bailey laughed. "Well, as long as you don't mind sharing the room with Porkers, its all yours. I think we're going to let him have that as his room."

Clyde paused. "Actually, I don't think Porkers will be joining you guys here. Seems he's found a sow that he's gotten real friendly with, and they have a litter of piglets on the way..."

"Oh..." She paused. "Well, I can't blame him for that. I won't take him away from his family. But, Daddy? I know how things work, but please don't ever have one of his offspring be the Christmas ham..."

He laughed. "I won't..." He paused. "But, I think I have another idea. You remember the cat we have on the farm who we use to take care of the mice in the barn?"

"Yeah, Sylvester..."

"Well, turns out Sylvester is a she, and she just had a litter of kittens. Of the six of them, five already seem to be mousers. But the runt of the litter prefers just to curl up and wants to be a house cat. Since I'm allergic to cats, I'm thinking maybe I could send it up with Amy when she comes back next month and it could stay with you two..."

Bailey looked at Cody who just shrugged. "That works for us, Daddy."

"Good. But speaking of looking out for offspring..." He wrapped his arm around Cody's shoulder. "I need to ask you a favor, Son. I already know you'll take good care of my Bailey for me, but I'm hoping you'll keep an eye on Amy up here in Boston for me too."

Cody nodded. "Consider it done, Clyde. But to be fair, I have enough trouble getting one Pickett girl to listen to me, so I'm not sure how successful I'll be trying to get another to..."

Clyde sighed. "Welcome to my world..." He paused as he thought of something. "Speaking of Boston though, something last night confused me..."

"What's that?"

"Well, I heard a lot of people saying something was wicked awesome. Is that good or bad?"

Cody laughed. "Its very good. Its just the way people talk around here."

Bailey nodded. "Its true, Daddy. Cody's accent isn't nearly as bad, but sometimes he'll let it slip out."

"While that may be so, you'll be happy to know your daughter has developed a little New England accent of her own. Occasionally, she'll forget that the alphabet has twenty-six letters and that the letter 'R' exists. I've heard her ask me for the 'cah' keys before, and she has even referred to our future university as 'Hahvid'..."

Her eyes went wide. "Cody! I have not. I always pronounce it Hahvid..." She paused. "I mean Harvard..."

Bailey blushed as everyone else had a good laugh at that. And when Cody took everyone up to show them the rooftop deck, Bailey pulled her sister behind.

"So, I'm guessing with you choosing Harvard, they finally offered you the most money, huh?"

Amy smiled. "Well, in the end, both Harvard and Yale offered me a full ride. So, I had to decide which I wanted to go to more. And once I thought about it, I figured having you and Cody nearby would be a nice perk after all, so that was an edge to Harvard. I think you were right about having a piece of home close by making things easier for me. But, there was another thing that finally tipped the scales in its favor."

"Yeah? What's that?"

She laughed. "Well, you've had good luck with a guy from Boston. I figured I'd give it a shot to see if I could find one here for myself..."

Twenty minutes later, everyone left the townhouse, and Cody and Bailey took them on an tour of Boston before heading back to the Tipton so everyone could take a well needed nap. A few hours later, after meeting up with everyone else, the large group headed downstairs for dinner in the hotel's restaurant. And from there, everyone headed out to enjoy the street festivals before the fireworks show that evening. But, shortly after the extravaganza was over, everyone was ready to call it a night. Not only were they still worn out from the day before, but they all did have a flight to catch the next morning at 10 AM.

Back in their room, once Cody and Bailey double checked their bags to make sure they had packed everything they would need for the next week, they double checked their alarm clock to make sure it was set before climbing into bed together.

"You know, Bails. After the past two days, it wouldn't surprise me at all if I slept all the way to LA tomorrow."

She laughed. "Yeah, it has been a crazy couple of days. But, its been good to have everyone here and to see them again."

"True." He yawned. "All I know is the next time we sleep in this bed again, it will be as husband and wife."

Bailey snuggled in closer to him. "I know...Goodnight, Hubby."

The next morning, six thirty came awfully early. But by eight o'clock that morning, everyone was showered, dressed and gathered in the lobby with their bags ready to catch the shuttle over to Logan International Airport. But before they could, an woman in her late thirties came over to talk to everyone.

"I hope you all have a good time in Hawaii, and congratulations to the soon to be newlyweds."

London just looked at her. "Who are you?"

The woman smiled. "I'm Teri Parson, I'm the new manager of the hotel, Miss Tipton. You're father hired me a couple of weeks ago, and today is my first day. I..."

Before she could finish, two blurs began running through the lobby, and Ms. Parsons sighed. "...And these are my twin sons, Alex and Kenny. They're aren't too thrilled about having to move halfway across the country to Boston..."

One of the two twelve year old boys rolled his eyes. "Because this place sucks! There's nothing fun to do here!"

His brother looked at him. "Alex, this is Boston! Despite all the cool historical places around here, we're in the cradle of American higher education. I mean, there are both Harvard and MIT here! Just think how awesome that is!"

Zack and Cody just looked at each other before laughing. They turned their attention to the other set of twins. "Guys, if we may offer you some advice, enjoy your time here at the Tipton. Ten years ago, we're were in the exact same position you two are in right now. And if you guys will just give it a chance, moving into the Tipton will be the best thing that ever happened to you both. Play your cards right, and you're both are about to begin the adventure of a lifetime."

"How can you know that?"

"Trust us..."

___To be Continued..._


	24. Aloha

_Episode 24_

_"Aloha"_

_I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did._

_Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them._

_Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves._

_And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so..._

_Los Angeles International Airport_

Soon after meeting the new manager of the Tipton and her twin sons, the shuttle to the airport finally arrived out front, and everyone began cramming all of their bags into its storage areas. And once it was loaded, everyone climbed on board before they began the drive over to Logan International Airport. But instead of going to the regular passenger departure terminal, they were all dropped off at the general aviation one. There waiting on them was one of the largest and nicest private jets anyone had ever seen - well, except for London. And even though there were more than thirty of them, there would be ample room for everyone to fly across the country in first class style. Once everyone took their seats and was buckled in, the plane moved towards the runway and took off towards the west a little before ten o'clock that morning.

Approximately six hours later, the plane touched ground at LAX. Even though it was close to four o'clock back in Boston, it was only about one o'clock in Los Angeles. And when they walked into the terminal, Cody and Bailey saw all of their families and friends who hadn't flown in with them there waiting on them. For Cody, there was a whole plethora of new members of the Pickett family he had never met before, and he tried his best to learn and remember all of their names. Fortunately for him, Grammy immediately came to his aid to help with the introductions. Likewise for Bailey, this was the first time she had met some of Cody's family that still lived in the Seattle area, and they all immediately wanted to talk to and get to know her. And fortunately for her, Mimi was there with her and helped prevent it from becoming an onslaught. So, for the hour layover they were going to have, neither of the soon to be newlyweds really got a chance to rest as they were constantly chatting with soon to be new relatives. After a while, both made excuses that they had to head to the restrooms so they could get away for a few minutes. But when they finally returned, they saw an interesting site before them. It seems that Grammy and Mimi were now sitting next to each other and laughing together like they were old friends.

"Should we be worried about that?"

Bailey paused before shrugging. "You know, I'm not sure. But knowing how sneaky those two can be, I wouldn't put anything past them..."

And as they were standing there wondering what their grandmothers might be up to, Zack and Maya walked up to them and handed each of them a frozen lemonade.

"Here. We figured you two could use these right now. If they are as sour the sign claims they are, they will give you an excuse to beg off from talking to anymore people. And, we're glad its you two having to deal with this and not us..."

"Thanks guys, we appreciate it. All I know is I'm more than ready to board our next plane and get on our way to Maui."

Zack nodded and yawned. "Me too. My first nap is beginning to wear off, and I feel another one coming on soon..."

And just as he had said that, Zack and Cody both felt an arm go around their necks and pull them into a big hugs that both jolted them awake. For their part, Maya and Bailey could only look on in shock and were about to do something when the twins' assailant began laughing.

"Zack and Cody! I almost didn't recognize you two! You both had to go and grow up on me!"

Zack and Cody both turned their heads as much as they could, and their eyes went wide when the saw who it was that had them in headlocks.

"NIA!"

She let them go and just grinned at them. "What? You were expecting someone else?"

Cody was stunned. "Actually, yeah. You said in your last e-mail that you wouldn't be able to join us..."

Nia laughed again. "Well, I thought I wasn't going to be able to until Friday night. I was supposed to have had a job lined up for this week, but it fell through at the last minute. So, I called Uncle Marion who gave me London's number. And just like that, here I am!"

Zack just looked at her. "Had a job lined up? What are you doing nowadays?"

"Security..."

He nodded. "Yeah, I can definitely see that. I do remember that you are a pretty good bodyguard..." He laughed. "But its good to see you again. You look exactly like I remember you, Nia."

"Maybe so, but like I said earlier, I hardly recognized the two of you. I remember these two short blonde boys, and now you're both men and college graduates. I can't believe how much you two have grown up on me..." Nia shook her head. "And for God's sake, we're all here because Cody is getting married!"

Cody smiled. "I sure am." He turned to Bailey. "Nia, I'd like to introduce you to my soon to be wife, Bailey Pickett. Bails, this is Nia Moseby. I'm pretty sure I've told you all about her."

Bailey smiled and stuck out her hand. "Its a pleasure to finally meet you, Nia. Cody has told me all kinds of stories about you, including one about some kind of clock that made french fries. And back on the boat, Moseby told us all about you as well. He kept saying he was going to get you to come visit us then, but you could never get a time worked out."

Nia smiled too as she shook her hand. "Yeah, I really wanted to go and see everyone again, but I've heard all about you, Bailey. Cody would e-mail me and tell me about how he had met the girl of his dreams. At first, I was worried that you were a figment of his imagination, but he finally sent me a picture of the two of you together. But when he told me that he was engaged, I realized I needed to find out more about you. So, I grilled Uncle Marion with questions and then had a friend of mine run a background check on you..."

Bailey was surprised. "You ran a background check on me?"

She laughed. "Yeah, but don't worry, you passed with flying colors. I just wanted to make sure you were good enough for my boy here." Nia paused and looked over at Maya. "And unless I'm mistaken, you must be Maya Bennett..."

Maya just nodded. "Yeah, that's me."

"And once I heard you and Zack were back together again and getting pretty serious, I had one run on you as well..."

She gulped. "You did?"

Nia laughed again. "Don't worry, you passed too." She turned to Zack and Cody. "You'd be surprised how many people who have absolutely nothing to hide get freaked out when they found out that you've run a back ground check on them. Heck, you should have seen how much Aunt Emma freaked out when I told her I had run one on her too..."

"Well, to be fair, its not everyday you hear that someone has run one on you."

"Yeah, I guess that's true, but when it comes to the people I care about, I don't take any chances." She turned back to the ladies. "No offense to either of you, but these two and I go way back. We've been through a lot together, and I just want to make sure no one was going to hurt them..."

Bailey nodded. "I completely understand. I very protective of Cody myself."

Maya nodded too. "And I with Zack..."

Nia grinned. "Good. Now, the way I figure it, we have about a five and half hour flight before we land in Kahului. You can all catch me up with what's going on in your lives once we're in the air."

_Kahului, Maui, Hawaii_

About five o'clock that evening local time (and close to eleven PM Boston time), the plane finally touched down in the Hawaiian Islands. All in all, everyone from Boston had been traveling for over thirteen hours that day, and they were thrilled to finally be back on solid ground once again. As the plane taxied to its gate, one of the flight attendants gave Cody and Bailey the intercom so they could address all of their friends and family.

"Welcome to Kahului, Maui. We've been told that the local time is 5:04 PM, and its a balmy 87 degrees outside right now. Cody and I appreciate you all flying Tipton Air and hope you all have a good time here during your stay in Maui."

Upon noticing the looks everyone was giving her, Bailey couldn't help but laugh. "Okay, I can see I should stick with medical school as a career as a flight attendant appears to be out. Anyways, Cody and I would like to thank you all for coming to our wedding. We are both honored by and appreciative of everyone taking time out of your busy lives to come help us celebrate us finally and officially becoming man and wife."

Cody took his turn on the horn. "Now, from what London has told us, there should be a couple of buses waiting outside of our baggage claim that will take us all to the Tipton Grand Hawaiian Resort. Once you get there, I ask everyone to be patient and courteous as you wait in line to get the keys to your rooms. Fortunately, London has also asked me to inform you that our group will have full complimentary use of the all of the resort's facilities and amenities including all tour packages. So, for the next week, Bailey and I want everyone to have fun, but please, remember to use plenty of sunscreen. We don't want anyone to be red as lobsters at the ceremony next Saturday afternoon."

Bailey took back over for him. "Now, I know that we've all been cramped together for several hours now on this plane, so the good news is that if you're tired of seeing our faces, you don't have to see us again until Friday evening. Then, everyone is cordially invited to our rehearsal dinner which will be an authentic Hawaiian luau out on the beach. Until them, like Cody said, have fun!"

He took back over once again. "For those who haven't been here before, Hawaii is one of the most beautiful places in the world." He smiled at his fiancee. "In my opinion, its still the second most beautiful thing these two eyes have ever seen..."

Almost as if on cue, the plane suddenly came to a stop then, and the pilot came on the intercom too to tell everyone they could unfasten their seat belts and begin to move about the cabin. Immediately, everyone stood up to begin gathering their carry on bags before forming a line to exit. And once the doors open, it was a stampede to get off the plane. Cody and Bailey just stood by their seats to let everyone else exit first. And besides them, the last two people on the plane were Brother Bob from the Pickett's church in Kettlecorn and his wife.

Bailey smiled. "Brother Bob, thank you again so much for agreeing to come and officiate our wedding."

He smiled. "Its my pleasure, Bailey. Its always a thrill for me to see one of the people I've known since they were a baby finally get married. I wouldn't have missed this for the world."

His wife laughed. "Don't let him lie to you! He's also been looking forward to a week in Hawaii ever since you asked him to do this!"

Brother Bob shook his head and sighed. "Well, that may be true. But now that I think about it, I always like to sit down with a couple I am about to preside over their wedding and have a little talk with them. You know, a meeting so I can marry them in good conscious. Normally, this would have been done well before now, but with you two living halfway across the country..."

Cody nodded. "Of course, Sir. We'd be happy to sit down with you."

"Cody's right. We're supposed to have our final fittings on Tuesday morning. How about we meet for lunch afterwards?"

Brother Bob smiled. "Sounds good to me. We'll see you then."

The minister and his wife proceeded to exit the plane. And after they did, Cody and Bailey just turned to look at each other. "This should be fun..."

Even though it was only a little after six o'clock when everyone finally got to the Tipton Grand Hawaiian, everyone was flat out exhausted. Most everyone had been on a plane at least ten hours that day and the ones from Boston had been on one for over twelve. Add that to the fact that six o'clock in Maui was the same as midnight back in the eastern time zone. Some people crashed immediately once they got to their rooms while others managed to stay up till ten o'clock. They figured by then, it would be dark outside and make it easier on themselves to acclimate to to the time change.

Monday was spent just taking it easy. Some headed to the beach while others hung around the pool area. Everyone was still fighting off jet lag, and decided to wait to go on tours such as visiting an active volcano on the big island or to the Pearl Harbor memorial on Oahu until later in the week. By Tuesday morning, everyone was feeling much more like their usual selves. And that morning brought with it the final fittings for everyone in the wedding party, and when Arturo was finished with all of them, most everyone else went off to enjoy the beautiful day. On the other hand, Cody and Bailey headed off to the resort's outdoor cafe to have lunch and their talk with Brother Bob and his wife. And once they finished eating, the preacher just looked at Cody and Bailey for a few moments.

"Alright. I just want to make sure you both know what you two are getting into when you say 'I do' on Saturday. For a lot of people, marriage brings with it some things they aren't prepared for. For one, actually living together with someone can often take quite a bit of time to get used to. And while they are adjusting, it can often lead to silly and petty arguments."

Cody and Bailey just looked at each other quickly before Bailey turned back to Brother Bob. Slowly, she began to answer a little nervously. "Ummm...We won't have any problems there. Cody and I have actually already lived together before. Every summer during college, we stayed together in his suite in Boston, and this past year, we had our own dorm room together at Yale..."

Brother Bob just gave them a look. "Oh...is that so?"

His wife rolled her eyes at him. "Oh please! Bob, this isn't 1965 anymore. Couples living together these days is actually quite common." She looked at Cody and Bailey and smiled. "To be honest, I actually think its a good thing. By doing that, you are already subjected to each other's little quirks and such. You learn from the beginning whether its a deal breaker or not..."

Cody smiled. "Definitely not one here. In fact, all of Bailey's little quirks only endear her to me even more. I think she is absolutely adorable when her hair is in every which direction first thing in the morning."

Bailey smiled too and nodded. "Same here. While some of Cody's idiosyncrasies are a little out there, I fully accept they are just part of who he is. Most of them I don't even notice anymore..." She laughed. "...well, except his snoring, but I find that to be one of the most comforting sounds in the world."

Cody continued. "Plus, its allowed us several other perks. By living together, we just couldn't just walk away if we had a fight or a disagreement about something. Instead, its caused to actually have to deal with what was bothering us. And, it allowed us to come up with a rule that we've both found to be a really good one. We've promised each other that any conflict we have must be resolved before we go to bed. That way, we never go to bed angry with the other..."

Brother Bob sighed. "Very well. While I might not personally agree with it, I do know it does happen. Lets move on to my next point. When I perform a wedding, I do it with the intention that it be for life – you know, until death do us part. But I also know that the divorce rate is around 50% in the USA right now. Why do you think you two will be among the half that will be able to make it?"

Bailey and Cody looked at each other again before Bailey nodded. "Well, to be honest, Brother Bob, the only marriage we'll have any say in will be our own. What others do will have no bearing on us. But I like to think we have a lot of advantages over others. Not only is Cody the man I love, but he is also my best friend. So, our marriage will be based on love, trust, and respect as well as friendship."

Cody spoke up. "Plus, I've had the misfortune of being raised in a broken home. Personally, I know that's not something I ever want to experience ever again or something I would want to subject any of our future children to. I guess some marriages just don't work out, but I will refuse to let that happen to us. I can't imagine my life without Bailey in it, and I will never do anything that could ever cause me to lose her again. I did once because of my own stupidity, but I've definitely learned my lesson."

She nodded. "So have I. We learned that relationships require constant maintenance and attention. You can't take them for granted, and we haven't since we've been back together for almost four and a half years now. Like Cody said, I refuse to do anything that could cause me to lose him again." Bailey paused before smiling. "Besides, we already know that we are still going to be just as happy and in love fifty years from now."

The minister just gave her a look. "You seem pretty confident of that."

She kept smiling. "I am, Brother Bob. I have faith in Cody and I. I know we're going to make it. Some may say we're young, but when you've met your soulmate, why should you have to wait?"

"Well, I've definitely married couples younger than you both..." He shrugged. "Alright, you've convinced me." He smiled. "You two have my blessing. I look forward to joining you both in the bonds of holy matrimony on Saturday."

_Meanwhile, Out on the Beach_

That morning, while Zack was off getting the final fitting for his suit, Maya joined the rest of their friends and headed down to the beach. With so many of them there, they had a spirited game of beach volleyball, and several of them used it as practice to keep them in game shape during their bye week. A little after noon, everyone else was starting to get hungry. So, she told them to go ahead and grab something, and she would catch up to them in a little while once Zack finally got back. So, when they headed off, Maya returned back to her lounge chair and decided to get some sun while she waited for Zack to return. So, she lied down on her stomach and sighed as she was just enjoyed the feeling of the sun on her back. About ten minutes later, she sensed someone was now sitting on the chair next to her.

Without looking up, she smiled. "Is that you, Zack?"

When she heard a grunting 'uh huh', she laughed. "Oh, don't whine. I'm sure the final fitting wasn't as bad as the first one was. Now, before we go meet everyone for lunch, would you mind rubbing some sun tan lotion on my back? Like Cody said, I want to make sure I don't turn into a lobster."

A few seconds later, she felt hands rubbing her shoulders, and she just sighed in contentment. "Thanks, Babe. I know I have to get up early tomorrow for my class, but I'm so glad you'll have the rest of the week off to..." But at that moment, she turned to look over at him. And when she saw it wasn't Zack, she shrieked and jumped back. Instead, she saw an eleven or twelve year old boy with the biggest grin on his face.

"You're not Zack!"

He just kept smiling. "Yes, I am! My name happens to be Zack. You asked if it was Zack, and it was..."

Maya shook her head. "Well, that maybe so, but you're not my Zack!"

About that time, a woman in her early forties came running over to them. "There you are, Zack, Jr.!" She grabbed his shoulders and sighed. "I hope you weren't bothering this nice, young lady..."

He just kept smiling. "But, Mom...she asked if my name was Zack, and I said it was..."

Maya's eyes went wide. "Because I thought he was my boyfriend, also named Zack coming down to join me! If I had known that..."

The woman shook her head. "Don't worry about it. Actually, it should be me apologizing. It seems my son here has just a little too much of his father in him. He's only eleven and already thinks he's a ladies man..."

Maya had to laugh. "That's completely understandable. In fact, I just think I got a good glimpse of what my boyfriend Zack was like at that age..."

The woman laughed too. "Must be something about the name Zack then, huh? I'm Kelly Morris..."

"Maya Bennett. My boyfriend is Zack Martin."

"My husband is Zack Morris. And like I said, the acorn doesn't seem to have fallen far from the tree with this little guy here."

"If you say so, but I'm now kind of worried what any potential sons my boyfriend and I might have some day..."

Kelly laughed again. "Don't be. Fortunately, my husband, Zack finally did mature and grow up when we were in college, and I'm sure this young one here will too...eventually." She paused and shook her head. "Although, he does think it was karma that our first three children were all daughters..."

Maya laughed. "Same with mine. My Zack really grew in the past four years in college. Back in high school, I wondered what the future would hold for him. Now, he just graduated from Boston University a couple of months ago and will be going to Harvard Business School next month..."

Kelly smiled. "I guess that is another thing they have in common. Both have a brain underneath their exteriors, but will only use them when they see fit to. My Zack smoked the SATs and actually got accepted to Yale."

"Well, my boyfriend's twin brother and his fiancee just graduated from Yale. And their going to Harvard Medical School next month. Actually, we're here in Hawaii for their wedding on Saturday."

"Good for them. We actually come her every year. My grandfather owned a hotel just down the beach, and when he passed, he left it to me and my siblings. In fact, my husband is now a business man himself and is taking care of some things for the Hawaiian Hideaway as we speak. This year, its just us, but usually, we have at least one of our close friends come out with us with their families."

"Same here, all of our old gang from high school is here too. With all of us so spread out now, I realize how lucky we are to be able to hang out with them when we can."

Kelly just nodded and sighed. "Enjoy it while you can. As much as you try to keep those relationships going, sometimes they just fade away. I haven't talked to my friend Jesse in several years. Last I heard, she had moved to Las Vegas to try to become a dancer. I never saw that coming. And then there is our friend, Screech..."

Maya looked at her funny. "Screech?"

"Long story. Anyways, he seems to have lost his mind and now resents the rest of us for some crazy reason. He won't have anything to do with us anymore..."

"I'm sorry to hear that..."

Kelly shrugged. "It is what it is. Just means you have to really work to maintain your friendships. Anyways, we've interrupted your time here enough. Have fun while you're here in Hawaii and enjoy your time with your friends."

And with that, she began leading her son away with her. As she did, Zack walked up next to Maya.

"Hey, Babe...I'm back." He nodded after the woman and her son. "Who was that?"

Maya paused. "Quite possible me in about twenty or so years..."

He just looked at her. "Huh?"

She shook her head and smiled. "Nevermind. You all done for the day now?"

"Yeah, I'm all free until Friday evening now."

"Good. Come on, if we hurry, we can catch everyone else and grab some lunch."

"Sounds good to me. I'm kind of starved."

"Lets go..." After gathering her things, they began walking towards the outdoor cafe. "Oh yeah, Zack?"

"Yeah, Babe?"

"I know I once told you that Zackerina was off the table, but I think I'm going to add the name Zack, Jr. to the banned list as well..."

_In Another Part of the Resort_

After their meeting with Brother Bob and his wife, Cody and Bailey headed up to their room to change. As they had been trying to make a good impression with the minister, they had dresser rather conservatively for lunch. But now, having the rest of the afternoon off, they wanted to hit the beach and get some sun. And that thought made them both laugh. They realized how absurd it would be to try to explain to people back Boston how they could manage to be in Hawaii for a week and not get a tan. So, they headed back up to their room to change into their swimsuits and coat each other in sunscreen. And as they were walking through the lobby to head out to the beach to meet everyone, Cody happened to glance up at the large clock on the wall.

"Hey...almost exactly five days from now will be showtime. How about we go check out the site of the ceremony and see what the sun and shadow situations are?"

Bailey smiled. "Good idea. I want to make sure the sun isn't in either of our eyes for the important parts."

"Tell me about it..." He paused. "You know what, maybe we should take video of it so we can add it to your video scrapbook for the week?"

Her eyes went wide. "I love it!" She paused and sighed. "But I left my camera up in our room..."

Cody smiled. "I'll go get it and meet you down there. And since its so warm, I'll grab us some bottles of water from the little refrigerator in our room to help us cool off. Fortunately, they're free for us instead of normally being five bucks a piece."

Bailey leaned in and kissed his cheek. "You're the absolute best, Sweetie. I'll see you out there in a few minutes."

While Cody headed back to the elevators, Bailey headed on outside. Instead of going to the main part of the beach, she headed over to the secluded area where the wedding would actually take place. And when she got there, she was surprised to see a woman in her mid thirties standing there looking out over the ocean. And when the woman realized she wasn't alone anymore, she smiled at Bailey.

"Sorry. I know this area is supposed to be off limits, but when I heard there was going to be a wedding here this weekend, I couldn't help myself. I just wanted to see what it would look like in person."

Bailey smiled. "No worries. I came here to do the exact same thing except I'm happen to be the bride for said wedding..."

The woman smiled wider. "Well, congratulations to you then! I'm Topanga Matthews, its nice to meet you."

"Bailey Pickett soon to be Martin here. Nice to meet you as well..."

Topanga nodded at the view. "You're very lucky. This place is absolutely gorgeous. But, it always has been. Hawaii will always hold a special place in my heart because its where my husband and I came for our honeymoon." She smiled. "Actually, my husband actually surprised me with a second honeymoon here this week for our 15th anniversary last fall (_This is actually accurate. According to Wikipedia, the wedding of Cory and Topanga aired in November, 1999, and this takes place in July 2015_)."

"Well, Hawaii holds a special place in my heart too. Its where Cody and I had our first ever date..."

Topanga's eyes went wide. "You're fiance's name is Cody?" She paused and began laughing. "My husband's name is Cory. Small world..."

Bailey laughed too. "Yeah, I guess it is..." She paused as well. "So, since you've been married for fifteen years, do you have any advice for someone getting married this weekend?"

She laughed. "Yeah, if you use his toothbrush or his razor, don't ever tell him! I learned that one the hard way. My husband is peculiar like that, and it freaked him out..."

"Oh, I know all about that. Fortunately, Cody uses a water pick, so we each have out own attachment. I've used his before accidentally, but I knew better than to tell him about it. Cody was kind of germaphobe, but he's gotten much better..."

"Know that feeling all too well myself. "Topanga paused again. "Actually, if I may though, I'd like to offer you some real advice. Never forget just how much you love your husband. Some days, you'll feel like wringing his neck because he drives you so crazy, but always remember those days are few and far between. Of course, you have to understand - my husband is a little different from most – he can tend to be a little...neurotic at times too."

Bailey laughed again. "Trust me, I know all about that too. Cody is the same way."

"But I also know there is nothing Cory wouldn't do to make me happy. Never forget just how well you both know each other. There was this one time when we were newlyweds ourselves that he painted our first apartment road paint yellow and was going overboard with cork. I hated it, but I tried to make the best of the situation knowing how hard he had worked on it. Well, turns out, he could tell I hated it and completely redid everything so I wouldn't. And it was perfect..."

"Cody is the exact same way. There was once he could tell how homesick I was, and he went out of his way to throw a festival like we had back in my hometown just to make me feel better. It was then I knew just how special he was."

Topanga paused. "And fortunately or unfortunately, depending on how you look at it, my career has helped me realize how truly lucky I am too..."

"How so?"

"Well, I was an attorney for several years before running for and being elected to a family court judgeship in New York City. Since then, I've seen so many heartbreaking cases come before me that I wish there was more I could do to help. Whether it be people who are abusive or just plain stupid, I come home every night thankful that my Cory is nothing like them."

Bailey nodded. "I can definitely see that..."

"Plus, I've seen so many people who made mistakes they wish they could take back, but they can't. It shocks me sometimes how many people think what their spouse don't know won't hurt them. But, the truth always finds a way of coming out, and when it does, lives can be ruined. There are so many people who take their spouses for granted or think they will forgive them for anything. Unfortunately for them, they learn the error of their ways the hard way. Plus, it seems I see more and more people who have been the victims of players or con men or others who have no respect for the sanctity of marriage..."

"Trust me, I'm familiar with people like that. At college, we had to bring down a few people who tried to mess with us. I hate people like that..."

"So do I. But, on the flip side, knowing there are people out there like that, it makes you appreciate more and more what you do have. My Cory may be neurotic, but I know he's all mine and I'm all his."

Bailey smiled. "I'm the same way with my Cody..."

Topanga checked her watch. "Well, I unfortunately need to get going. Cory was going searching for coconuts to ship back to our house for him to carve..." When she saw the look on Bailey's face, she shook her head. "Don't ask. And I need to call home and check on our kids. Somehow, Cory convinced me they would be just fine staying with their Uncle Eric while we were gone." She sighed. "Another bit of advice. You may be marrying one person, but you are marrying into an entire family. I have a brother-in-law who used to think he was a real ladies man before he went crazy. He's gotten better over the years, but still..."

Bailey laughed again. "I know what you mean. Sounds just like my soon to be brother-in-law though he hasn't gone crazy yet."

Topanga smiled. "Well, Bailey, I wish you and Cody the best of luck with your wedding and marriage. I hope you two will have a long and happy one."

"Thank you, Topanga, and thank you for your advice and warnings..."

As Topanga walked off, Cody returned with the camera and bottles of water. And when he got there, he nodded over his head.

"Was that someone with the resort?"

Bailey shook her head. "Nah. Just a wife giving some advice to a soon to be one. You know, I think if she and I were the same age, we would have been really good friends."

"You think so?"

She smiled and teased him. "Yeah. Seems we both have a thing for neurotic guys whose names start with 'C', end in 'Y', and have an 'O' in the middle..." She leaned in and kissed him. "I'm glad your back now. Lets check this place out..."

Wednesday and Thursday were spent just enjoying the resort, but they knew Friday evening was when the real fun began. At one point, everyone saw there was a zip line adventure tour nearby that they wanted to go on. But when they asked Zack and Cody, both politely told them to go without them. Both still had memories of the last time they were on one of those at the Gemini Project and had no desire to do anything to further bring back those memories. So, instead, Zack and Maya took surf lessons while Cody and Bailey took scuba diving lessons. Finally, Friday arrived, and while everyone else not in the wedding party had almost all that day off, the wedding party had to all meet at the site of the wedding for a rehearsal. The wedding coordinator went through everything a few times with them to make sure everyone knew what they were supposed to do the next day. And once that was done, they went through the whole ceremony (well, everything but the actual vows) a couple of times to make sure everyone had it down pat. When everything was to the coordinator's and Bailey's satisfaction, she gave everyone their final instructions before releasing them to the rehearsal dinner.

And from the beginning, everyone could tell it was going to be a large party. Everyone dined on an authentic Hawaiian feast while there was entertainment with actual hula and fire dancers. After a while, their were catcalls for Cody and Bailey to get up there and join them on stage. Shrugging and laughing, they donned grass skirts themselves and joined in as best they could. Of course, they had their revenge when they had all of their families and friends join in too. And after a while, they saw Grammy Pickett was laughing hysterically.

"What is it, Grammy?"

She just smiled and patted her camera. "I told you guys I was going to get a picture of Clyde in a grass skirt, and I did! I'm going to have so much fun with that later on. Heck, I might use it in my Christmas cards this year..."

They just shook their heads and laughed too. But as the night went on, it was time to cut the groom's cake. Originally, Cody had wanted it in the shape of the large hadron collider, but, Chef Paulo just looked at him in confusion when he had mentioned it. So, instead, Cody asked for it to be made in the shape of S.S. Tipton, and that's what it ended up looking like. And as everyone ate their cake, it was time for a couple of toasts.

First up was Clyde and Eunice. "We'd like to thank everyone for coming all the way here for the wedding of our daughter, Bailey and our newest son-in-law, Cody." Eunice just smiled. "But, I do have to ask everyone here - how long have we all know this day was going to come? I mean, I can still remember the letters Bailey first sent home to us from the S.S. Tipton. She mentioned all of the new friends she was making, but I couldn't help but notice how more and more of them mentioned this young feller from Boston named Cody. Then one day, I got this letter from her after he had put on a mulch festival for her on the ship. I could tell right then from the way she talked in that letter that my daughter was smitten. And then I got another one not long afterwards telling me that Cody was now her new boyfriend, and I could easily tell how happy she was."

Clyde took over. "Of course, I wanted to meet this young man my daughter had seemed to have fallen for. Unfortunately, I didn't get to do that until they were both in their...how do they refer to it...bouts of stupidity. I wish I could say things went smoothly the first time I met Cody, but there were a few bumps early on. That was when the twister hit Kettlecorn, and everything was a complete mess. So, it was just all around bad timing the first time I met him. And even though we did get off to a slow start with each other, I could still see how much my daughter meant to him. Cody did everything he could to save our family farm. And while it didn't quite turn out the way he hoped it would, it did all turn out for the best."

Eunice continued. "Since that time, we've gotten to know Cody even better and better. He's proven himself to be a fine young man with a good head on his shoulders and an even better heart..." She laughed. "In fact, the only part of him that we've found to be lacking was his appendix..." Everyone laughed at that. "But more importantly, he's proven over and over his level of dedication to our daughter and to our family. Around the farm, he may not always know what he's doing, but he's always there willing to help out in any way he can..." She smiled. "Of course, to the chickens on the farm, he is their new grim reaper. Which brings up the really interesting thing about these two. My daughter and soon to be son-in-law kind of have things kind of reversed. Bailey is more handy with a saw or a hammer while Cody is more handy with a butcher's knife or a spatula. But to them, that makes perfect sense. Where one of them is lacking, the other is strong and vice versa." Eunice laughed again. "But to all of us who know them, we know that wasn't good enough for them. They've been teaching the other how to improve in the areas they are weak on in the past several years..."

Clyde laughed too. "Tell me about it. If you had told me four years ago that Cody would actually be useful around the farm, I would have thought you had lost your mind. But he is now. Thanks to him, I now have over five hundred channels on my TV. I know he'll never be a farmer, but that's not what he was meant to be. And last month when they came back to Kettlecorn, Bailey actually fixed breakfast for us all by herself one morning, and it was delicious! Never thought I'd ever see that day either..." He paused. "Which in all has taught me a very valuable lesson. Sometimes a father thinks he knows who or what is best for his daughter. But often, especially with a daughter like Bailey, turns out she is the one who knows what is best for her. And in her opinion, Cody is what's best for her. I might not have agreed at first, but now, I do completely. I once said I couldn't imagine anyone better to be a boyfriend for my Bailey..." He held up his glass. "Now I know there is no one better to be a husband to her. I wish nothing but the best for them and hope they have a long and happy life together. Bailey, I am so proud of you, and Cody, welcome to the family...Son."

And with that, everyone raised there classes and toasted the couple. Once they did, Carey and Kurt stood up to take their turn to toast Cody and Bailey.

"For those that don't know me, I'm Kurt Martin, and I'm Cody's Dad. I can still remember watching him grow up as a bright, idealistic child who has now become a man. While both my boys were growing up, I always hoped they would find what would make each of them happy. Well, I think its safe to say that they have. Clyde and Eunice were just mentioning the first times they heard about Cody. Well, I can still remember the first time I head about Bailey. I'm sure most people here know that my son can tend to be...verbose. Well, not long after my sons had left for Seven Seas High, Cody sent me this extremely long e-mail telling me all about this girl he had just met. Like Eunice said earlier, I could tell my son was smitten. He even went on to tell me about his six month plan to win her over..." Kurt smiled. "The fact that we're all here means it worked. And like the Picketts, I couldn't wait to finally meet Bailey to see what she was like myself. I'm happy to say that she was everything that Cody said she was and more. She's sweet, kind, intelligent, driven, and most importantly, she makes Cody happier than I've ever seen him. I guess Cody knew what he was talking about when he sent me an e-mail back in high school saying he was going to marry her..."

Carey spoke up. "I also got similar e-mails from Cody, but my reaction was a little different. Ever since my boys have been young, they've both been my babies. Well, even though they are both now 21, college graduates and Cody is about to married, they will always be my babies. So, I wanted to make sure this girl I had never met was good enough for my baby boy." She smiled. "And I'm happy to say that Bailey is everything I could have ever asked for for my son."

"Agreed. Ever since Bailey came into his life, Cody is almost a different person. He now has a self confidence about him that we know comes from her. He has someone who accepts him totally for himself and makes him feel like its okay to be himself." Kurt laughed again. "And he finally has someone he can carry on those conversations with that leave the rest of us completely lost and baffled..."

Clyde laughed too. "You can double that for Bailey..."

"But most of all, Cody has finally met his match. Like Carey said, Bailey is everything I could have ever hoped for for Cody. I couldn't be more proud of them than I am. And I have to admit that Cody and Bailey have had an impact on the rest of us Martin men. The rest of us thought we knew what we were doing with the opposite sex, but Cody showed us how its really supposed to be done. He had a relationship based on love, respect, trust and friendship. He showed Zack and I what we both should have been looking for too." Kurt smiled. "I like to think he's rubbed off on to us..."

Carey laughed. "Which is a miracle unto itself. But getting back to what were here for, I wanted to say one more thing. While I knew Bailey was everything I could want for Cody, as a mother, I still found it tough to let go. You would think with my boys going to high school on a cruise ship or Cody going off to Yale, that would have made it easier, but it didn't. I still worried about him, but I did know that he had Bailey there with him to take care of him. He was still my baby boy though, and it was hard to fully let go. Well, two years ago, I realized I could and everything would be alright. When I heard that Cody had been rushed to the hospital for his appendectomy, I was beside myself. I knew Cody needed me, and I was bent on taking care of him myself..." She smiled. "It didn't quite work out that way though. He already had Bailey there to do all of that, and she let me know she had everything taken care of. I realized then that Cody's well being was now her responsibility. I didn't like having to admit that, but its true. But it was also comforting too. I've accepted that my baby boy is now foremost Bailey's man...or feller as it would seem. And I'm happy about that. So, I'd like to offer my son and new daughter a toast. Just keep doing what you've been doing and you two should be just fine." She paused and laughed. "But I'm still not ready to be a grandmother yet..."

Eventually, the rehearsal luau began to wind down. And as it did, Cody and Bailey had to bid each other goodnight as they were going to follow the tradition of the groom not seeing the bride on the day of the wedding until she walked down the aisle.

"I guess I'll see you tomorrow, huh?"

Bailey smiled. "Yeah, I'll see you at the altar. I'll be the one in the white dress..."

Cody smiled back. "I know you'll look beautiful."

She leaned in and kissed him. "Thanks, Sweetie. I know you'll look handsome too. Will you be okay tonight with Zack looking after you?"

"I think so. There seems to be the tradition of the night before poker game that the guys have planned..." He paused. "I wonder if they'll have a panda that gives out hugs again.."

Bailey laughed and gave him a hug herself. "Well, there's one for you just in case you need it."

"I prefer ones like that anyways. Good luck to you staying with London tonight."

"I'll be fine, and I'm thinking of going to bed early anyways. The earlier I fall asleep, the sooner tomorrow will get here."

He smiled again. "Just think. This time tomorrow, we'll be husband and wife."

She grinned. "I know. I can't wait. And a full five and a half years earlier than London's magic mirror said we would..." At that moment, they heard someone clearing their throat. Looking to the side, they saw Zack glaring at them.

"Time to get moving, Broseph. I have one last night of you as a single man, and I'm not going to waist another minute of it!"

Cody shrugged. "Alright." He leaned in and kissed Bailey again. "See you tomorrow at the alter, Mrs. Martin..."

_To be Continued..._


	25. At Last

_Episode 25 Part I_

_"At Last"_

_I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did._

_Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them._

_Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves._

_And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so..._

_Bailey's Hotel Suite_

After Zack had dragged Cody away the previous night, Bailey wasn't left on her own for long as she was soon dragged off by the ladies herself back to her room in hopes of keeping her occupied until it was time for bed. But, by eleven thirty that night, she was ready to call it a night. And it wasn't that she was particularly tired just then, but she was hoping the sooner she went to bed, the sooner she would fall asleep and the sooner the next day would hurry up and get there. Unfortunately for her, she just laid in bed for about an hour tossing and turning as she missed having Cody there next to her. Of course, that did make her laugh. She had often called him her Cody Bear because he was so easy to cuddle with and she was going to have to spend the night without him. But, she just kept reminding herself that this was the only night she would have to be without him, and the next night, she would have her new husband there with her. That thought seemed to calm her down enough to let her finally drift into a peaceful slumber about twelve thirty. And that thought seemed to give her such peaceful dreams that she was still asleep at nine o'clock the next morning. Even though it was now officially July 11, her wedding day, she probably would have continued to sleep until she felt someone gently shaking her shoulders.

Bailey just sighed as she buried her face into her pillow. "Five more minutes, Cody..."

"I'm not Cody, and you need to get up right now if we're going to get everything done this morning that we need to get done!"

Bailey paused when she realized that wasn't Cody's voice, opened one of her eyes and looked up. And when she did, she saw London standing there with her arms crossed scowling at her.

"London?"

London rolled her eyes. "Of course its me! Who did you think it was? The Tooth Fairy?" She shook her head. "Anyways, it time for your lazy butt to finally get out of bed because we have a lot to do! I let you have as much beauty sleep as possible because today of all days, you need it!"

"London!"

She laughed. "Oh, I was just kidding. But, you need to get up now as room service just brought up our breakfast for us. We need to hurry up and eat so we can get a move on. I wasn't kidding about us having a lot to do though..."

Bailey let out a little laugh as she sat up in bed. "This is a first - you waking me up and telling me I had to get up or I would be late for something. It seemed like at least four days a week in high school that I had to drag you out of bed..."

"Yeah, yeah. But if I'm going to make sure you look fabulous for at least once in your life..." She grabbed Bailey's arm and began dragging her out of bed. "...we have to get moving now!"

Bailey just shrugged as London pulled her into the main room of the suite. And like she said, there was a room service cart there with two plates filled with an assortment of fruits, omelets, toasts, and juices. As the two ladies sat down to eat, Bailey looked up at her maid of honor.

"So, what all do we have to do this morning exactly?"

London pulled out her list and checked it. "First up is that we're heading down to the spa for massages and then full body waxes..."

Hearing that, Bailey just about spit out her juice. "Excuse me? Did you just say full body waxes?"

She laughed. "Oh yeah, everything from the eyebrows down..." She paused. "We need to get those worked on too, so let me add that to my list. Yours aren't as bad as Woody's, but they do need some plucking. Anyways, after that, we are scheduled for manicures and pedicures. And don't worry, all of the rest of the ladies will join us for those. And after that, we'll all head back to our rooms to get cleaned up before we all have our hair appointments. Again, for once, I want to see what your hair looks like when its actually styled by a professional! I think it has some potential if you would every do more with it other than condition it with pig's milk..."

Bailey frowned. "But I like my hair just the way it is..."

"Of course you do, but this is your wedding day! Don't you want to look your absolute best? Don't you want Cody's eyes to go wide and see his tongue to fall to his feet when he sees you come down the aisle? Once you two get back from your honeymoon, you can go back to wearing it in a ponytail everyday for all I care..."

"But Cody likes it just the way it is too..."

London sighed. "Of course he does. But that's not the point here. Anyways, after that, everyone else will all head back to their own rooms so they can change for the ceremony. While they're doing that, we'll come back up here where my personal make up artist will see to it that you're make up for today is flawless..."

Bailey shook her head and sighed. "But I wasn't going to wear much today anyways. Cody always tells I look the best when I have a natural look..."

"Again, of course he does. Just trust me here. I'll make sure he likes what he sees. Bailey, after seven years, I know your style by now. It'll look natural, and Cody will love it. Besides, I wouldn't make you look clowny like Tut used to look. Finally, once that's done, it will be time for you to put your dress on, and once Arturo makes sure it fits perfectly..." London smiled. "...it will be time to go get you married off..."

Bailey smiled. "Well, I do like the sound of that last part..."

London couldn't help but to smile too. "I know. I admit there were times when I wondered who would ever want to marry you, but I know I was being a little arrogant then. Bailey, you're one of my best friends, and I would never let you marry anyone that I didn't believe was truly worthy of you. Fortunately for Cody, I know he is. Its been obvious to a lot of us for a long time just how much that boy loves you. I think he would drink your bathwater if you asked him to..."

She laughed. "Thank you, London...I think."

Of course, London had to laugh too. "Of course, Cody is my friend as well, so this works both ways. I would never let him marry anyone that wasn't worthy of him either. I mean...if it wasn't for him, there never would have been a _Yay Me!_" She paused and shook her head. "I remember on one of our first episodes, he told my audience what his idea of the perfect first date would be. After hearing about it, I couldn't imagine anyone wanting a second date with him afterwards. But, I'm happy to say that I was wrong about that. I know your first date with him was at the Hannah Montana Concert, but he told me your second date together was exactly what he had told me years before. I guess you liked it as not only did you give him a third date, but you're about to give him the rest of your life too."

"The seaquarium and the picnic in front of the florescent fish? I loved that date! I thought it was absolutely perfect." She smiled again. "Maybe because he's my perfect feller..."

London nodded. "Yeah, he is. I think I knew that pretty early on on while we were all back on the boat. You two just seemed to fit together like a lock and its key. When you two finally got together, you both seemed to open up so much. Almost as soon as you two started dating, I could see a change in Cody in that he became more confident in himself and with who he was. And I know that was because of you. Likewise, I saw a sense of ease and comfort in you because you finally had someone who really got you and understood you. You two had each other, and you didn't care what anyone else thought. I have to admit, for a while I was extremely jealous of you two for that..."

That caught Bailey off guard. "You were?"

"Yeah, I was. I wanted to meet someone who looked at me the same way you two looked at each other." London let out a little laugh. "Little did I know then that I had already met that person. It just took me a little while to find Todd again."

"Well, I'm glad you did, London. I want all of my friends to feel exactly what I'm feeling today."

"Of course, you two did have to go and be idiots for a little while, but fortunately, you were able to overcome that eventually. I mean, it was obvious to the rest of us that you two were still crazy about each other but too stubborn to admit it. Zack, Woody and I used to have a good laugh about you two and even considered stepping in and having an intervention with you two..."

Bailey sighed. "Why didn't you then? I wish you guys had sat us down and tried to knock some sense into us."

"Because you two had to figure it on on your own. And you did." She smiled. "I mean, you did yell into your phone that you needed him, and what did Cody do? He dropped everything and made his way to Kettlecorn to make sure you were alright. If that's not love, I don't know what is. And when he did that, I knew it wouldn't be long before you two got back together..."

Bailey smiled. "Yeah, less than a day. I'm glad I was able to finally admit that my heart still did and will always belong to Cody. You know...its kind of funny how a disaster can turn out so well in the end..."

London just gave her a look. "Kind of like what happened in Virginia too, huh?"

Bailey's eyes went wide. "How do you know about that?"

London laughed. "Oh, I have my ways...Now hurry up and finish eating. We need to get moving."

_Cody's Hotel Suite_

Like Cody said, there was indeed a wedding eve poker game on Friday night. Unfortunately for him, he didn't do so well, but that really didn't matter to him. And like, Bailey, he had called it a night about eleven thirty and initially had some trouble falling asleep. But unlike Bailey, Cody woke up early and found himself to be a total ball of energy. After seeing that it was only 7:30 AM in the morning, he tried to go back to sleep, but he was unsuccessful. So, he decided to go ahead and get up and try to find someway to keep himself from bouncing off of the walls. But looking around his suite, he saw nothing in there that would allow him do that. So, he did the only thing he could think of – he changed into a t-shirt and pair of shorts and headed downstairs to the resorts fitness center. And that was exactly what he needed. After a good forty-five minute work out, he felt a thousand times better. No longer did he feel like an electron in a particle accelerator. Of course, when he got back to his room, he found his brother pacing back and forth outside of it with his cell phone to his ear.

When Zack saw his brother walking towards him, he let out a huge sigh of relief and pocketed his phone. "There you are!" He looked back at Cody and glared at him. "Where have you been? I've been banging on your door for the past ten minutes! And I've called you five times now and didn't get an answer!"

Cody shrugged. "I woke up with too much energy, so I went down stairs to try to burn some of it off. No big deal..."

"No big deal? I thought you had gotten cold feet and bolted!"

Cody couldn't help but laugh. "As if! Zack, I've been waiting for this day for a very long time now. I'm not going anywhere without my very soon to be wife..."

Zack rolled his eyes. "You could have told me where you were going..."

"I didn't know you were going to be here this early..." He paused. "I mean...its barely eight thirty. What are you doing here this early anyways?"

Zack sighed. "Last night, London gave me a schedule for me to keep you on this morning. And she gave me one of those looks that told me there would be serious ramifications if I didn't..."

Cody laughed again. "Alright. What's first on our agenda?"

"We're supposed to meet Dad and Clyde for haircuts at 10:00 followed by appointments with the nail person at 10:45. Then we can all break for lunch. After that, just have to be back up in your room by 1:00 so Arturo's assistant can make sure we're dressed properly..." He paused. "I sure am glad his assistant is a woman. Anyways, we have to be suited up and down on the beach by 1:45."

"Alright, well, we have plenty of time to go grab some breakfast then. Just give me fifteen minutes to grab a shower, and we'll head on downstairs. Besides, after my workout, I'm kind of starving right now."

Zack shrugged. "Well, I guess that's good that you aren't so nervous that you don't have an appetite..."

So, that's what he did, and by 9:00 AM, they were being shown to their seats in the restaurant downstairs. After placing their orders, they had a few minutes to take it easy and catch their breath. But that was when Cody paused and grinned at his brother.

"So, is this where you're going to give me the same speech you gave Esteban right before he got married?"

Zack shook his head and chuckled. "Nah...my views on the institution of marriage have changed slightly since then. I don't see it in quite such a...negative light any more. So, I won't try to talk you out of it."

"I'm glad to hear that..." He began laughing as he teased his brother. "Considering you once told me that asexual reproduction would be the only way you'd ever be an uncle. I think its safe to say that I guess Bailey and I will just have to try it the old fashioned way in a few years."

Zack shrugged his shoulders before laughing too. "Hey, how did I know that you'd actually find someone out there who actually enjoyed putting up with you? I mean, when we were younger, I never would have saw it coming. But, I guess there is someone out there for everyone, huh?"

Cody teased his brother again. "Especially someone with so much...baggage, right?"

He shook his head and laughed again. "Yeah, well that shows you how much I knew about women back then..." He paused. " Not that I know much more about them now..."

"Its like I keep telling you, Zack. The goal is not to understand women but to understand your woman."

"I know that now. Maybe I realized something back then that you should have learned last night - you gotta know when to hold 'em and when fold 'em. Besides, I don't think it would have even mattered if I hadn't backed off. Like I said before, Bailey likes the brainy, sensitive guys, and it didn't take long for me to realize that you two were a perfect match."

"Is that why you liked giving us so much hell back then?"

"No, I did that because it was fun. Of course, at the time, I couldn't understand why you would want to settle down with just one girl. To be honest, I was pretty sure you had lost your mind..." He paused again. "Even though I didn't know it back then, I understand now how your entire way of thinking can change when you meet the right one..."

"Tell me about it." Cody grinned. "So, is that your way of telling me that our roles here might be switched sooner than later like Mimi thinks they well?"

Zack shrugged. "Maybe. I have no idea. But its not because I'm unsure, because I'm not. I know I love Maya and want to marry her some day. I just want to make sure the timing is right. You know, maybe I'll wait until we both graduate for good in a couple of years? I just think with both of us trying to finish our educations as two different universities, it would be best if we're both done with school before we did anything like this ourselves..."

Cody could only nod. "I can understand that..." He paused and grinned. "Though, it will work out for me and my misses because as a married couple, Harvard is going to give us the exact same schedule."

"Yeah, don't rub it in, Broseph..."

"Hey, its my day, and I'll do whatever I want!" He laughed. "Well, Best Man, what kind of advice do you have for me on this my wedding day?"

Zack paused to think. "Well, first of all – don't screw this up! You're never going to find someone who actually loves you and enjoys being with you like Bailey ever again!"

Cody laughed again. "I already knew that. I've know that for a long time now."

"Other than that, all I can say is just keep doing what you're doing. You love her, so never let her forget that. I mean, you're still romancing her after all these years, so that must be working for you..." He paused. "And, your brief periods of stupidity taught you more than I could ever teach you..."

"Very true. Those who forget the past are doomed to repeat it. Well, that won't be us."

"Good. Because if you two get stupid like that again, I'll do what I almost did the last time..."

That caught Cody's attention. "And what was that exactly?"

Zack laughed. "Lock you two in a closet and not let you out until you two figured it out!"

"I kind of wish you would have..."

"Trust me...Woody and I were this close to doing that, but London said you two had to work it out in your own way." He smiled. "I had a good feeling when you dropped everything and immediately left for Kettlecorn. Looks like I was right about that."

"I'm glad you were."

Zack laughed again. "I usually am. And remember this. I know how much of a pain in the butt we can both be. We both got lucky that we found great girls who are willing to put up with us."

Cody laughed too. "You can say that again!"

"But..."

"But what?"

Zack sighed. "Well, not to get all touchy feely here, but I also hope Bailey knows how lucky she is too. Codester, except for about ten minutes, it seems like you've always been there right beside me. For a long time growing up, it was you and me against the world. I may not have always shown it, but you've been the best brother a guy could have ever asked for. And more than that, the best friend I could have asked for too. No matter what all has happened to us, I've always known you had my back and that I had yours..."

"And we always will..."

"I know, but what I'm trying to say is that you are probably the best guy I know, Bro. Despite what I've said over the years about your interactions with ladies, you've always had better luck with them than I gave you credit for. Over the years, a lot of girls threw themselves at you, but you just never noticed. And then you met Bailey, and every other girl might as well have not existed. Almost from the start, its like you knew. And I've always known that one day a special lady would hit the jackpot when she lassoed you..." He laughed. "Little did I know then that the one who actually would actually knows how to lasso. But I guess what I'm trying to say is that despite what I've said before, its pretty easy to see exactly what Bailey sees in you. And despite her and my differences, I do know how happy she makes you. So, if she can keep doing that, I welcome her into our family with open arms. I wish nothing but the best for the two of you..."

Cody was touched. "Thank you, Zack. That means a lot to me coming from you."

"Yeah, well...the touch feely part of this conversation is now officially over!" About that time, their waiter brought over their food. "Alright, eat up, Broseph. We have a lot to do this morning before we get you married off."

"I'll keep that in mind..."

"Besides, since this is your wedding day, I seriously hope you don't do anything stupid like in that one movie..."

"Which movie would are you talking about?"

Zack grinned. "You know. The one were the guy gave himself a...special haircut and ended up ruining his wedding cake?"

Cody shuddered. "Oh yeah, I remember that now. Well, you don't have to worry about that here..."

Zack teased him. "Come on now, Codester...its your wedding day. You shouldn't neglect your manscaping obligations today of all days..."

Cody shook his head. "Zack, I know you and I have talked about a lot of different things over the years, but this is one conversation I have no desire to have with you right now!"

He laughed. "Oh, I know...but I couldn't resist the urge to try to make you uncomfortable this morning..."

Cody gave him a look back. "Gee thanks..."

Zack checked the time on his cell phone. "Now, hurry up and eat..." He paused. "And if you tell anyone about all of the nice things I said about you earlier, I'll punch you in the ear!"

_Bailey's Hotel Suite_

A little after one o'clock that afternoon, the living room area of Bailey's suite was filled to the brim with Carey, Mimi, Maria, Addison, Maya, Courtney, Maddie, Gertie, Emma, Eunice, Grammy, and all nine of Bailey's sisters. All of them were already dressed for the ceremony, and with so many people in one room, they had the air conditioner working over time. Of course, with less than an hour to go before the ceremony was scheduled to begin, their was definitely a buzz in the air as everyone was getting excited. Most of all, they couldn't wait to see Bailey walk out of her bedroom in her wedding dress for the first time. And they were getting anxious as the bride was still in her bedroom where London and Arturo were supervising as his assistant, the hairdresser and the make up artist were all doing their final touches.

Finally, at about 1:20, the door to the bedroom finally opened. London was first one to enter the main room, and everyone immediately commented her on how lovely she looked in her bridesmaid's dress. But as London was basking in the adoration from everyone, she frowned when she noticed them all go silent. Turning around, she saw that Bailey had finally emerged from her bedroom. And once she had, everyone else in the room was momentarily speechless before they began oohing and ahhing. Bailey looked absolutely gorgeous, and her dress was seemingly perfect. Arturo had really outdone himself this time. It was a simple sleeveless white dress that came down just below her knees that had intricate lace details adorning the shoulder straps, the waist and the hem of the dress. And instead of a traditional veil, she wore a wreath of flowers in her magnificently style hair that had a matching silk veil hanging from the back of it.

Bailey grinned and did a twirl for everyone. "So, what do you guys think?"

Eunice just smiled at her daughter. "Honey, you look absolutely beautiful! I wouldn't be surprised if we have a speechless groom on our hands..."

Bailey smiled back at her. "Well, as long as he gets his voice back in time for our vows, I don't think I would mind that at all..."

Carey laughed. "Oh, I don't think wild horses could keep Cody from saying his vows. But, you did get a timer for him though, right?"

She shook her head. "No, Cody said I wouldn't need one. He said he was going to try his best to keep them as brief as he could. Besides, I don't care if he gets a little verbose as long as everything he says comes straight from his heart."

Grammy grinned. "Oh, I have no doubts he will do just that..."

Mimi nodded her agreement. "Well, Cody did ask me to proofread the outline he had for his vows, and I got teary eyed when I read it. I know you'll love them, Bailey."

Bailey grinned. "I can't wait to hear them then." She turned to London. "So, now that we are all dressed and ready to go, what are we supposed to do now?"

London checked her schedule. "You're Dad is supposed to be here by 1:30. He should be one floor down still with the guys getting ready."

_Cody's Hotel Suite_

Like Bailey was in her suite, Cody too was surrounded by everyone trying to keep him from bouncing off the walls. Unfortunately for the groom, with the ceremony now less than an hour away, he was getting both excited and anxious. He, like everyone else, was already in his suit, and had trouble standing still as Arturo's other assistant and the other hairdresser were drying to make their last minute touches to him as well. Of course, as he was standing there, everyone was teasing him. And while there weren't as many people in his suite as in Bailey's, there was still Tapeworm, Woody, Marcus, Bob, Todd, Trevor, Arwin, Moseby, Clyde, all six of Bailey's brothers-in-law, Kurt, Zack and Cody. And like one floor above them, they too had the air conditioner going full blast. And as soon as Cody was deemed ready to go, he sighed in relief.

But it was at that moment that Tapeworm checked his watch and turned to everyone not in the wedding party. "Guys, its about time for us to head down and meet up with our ladies so we can grab our seats. Once we get them seated, we'll head back and get ready for our ushering duties."

Marcus nodded. "Yeah, its time to get this party started..."

Woody just grinned. "I know...I can't wait for the reception. After this week, I'm going to need to pull my P90X tapes back out of the closet..."

Cody turned to Zack. "So, what's next on London's schedule?"

Zack pulled it out of his pocket and unfolded it. "Ummm...we're supposed to head down and meet the minister at 1:40. And actually, Clyde?"

"Yeah?"

"You should have left a few minutes ago to head up to Bailey's room."

Quickly, Clyde checked his watch before jumping up. "D'oh! On my way..." He paused and winked at Cody. "I'll see you down at the front with my daughter in a little while."

Cody grinned. "I'll be there."

Clyde quickly left to head upstairs as most of the other guys left as well to head on down to the beach to meet up their girlfriends or wives. And with them all gone, it was just Cody, Zack and Kurt left in the room. But before he left though, Woody paused and looked at Zack.

"You owe my twenty bucks!"

Zack rolled his eyes and pulled the money out of his pocket. "Yeah, yeah..."

Woody grinned and left, and once he was gone, Cody looked at his brother. "What was all that about?"

He sighed. "You remember that scene in Dumb and Dumber where they had to bring out the power sander to giver one of the guys a pedicure? Well, I bet Woody they would have to do that here today. They didn't, so I lost..."

"Okay..."

Kurt shook his head before turning to his youngest son and smiled.

"Cody, son, I am so proud of you. I've known this day has been coming for a long time now, and I can't wait to officially have Bailey as my daughter-in-law. Now, here's the big question - are you ready?"

Cody just smiled back at him. "Dad, I've been ready for this day for almost seven years now. Lets do it!"

_Bailey's Hotel Suite_

The ladies in Bailey's room had also left to meet up with their guys so they could take take their seats, and the only ones left in the room were Eunice, Grammy, Carey, Mimi and London. And as it neared go time, they were all busy trying to keep the bride calm so she wouldn't smear her makeup, muss her hair or get her wedding dress dirty. Fortunately, there was a knock at the door that seemed to distract her. And when London opened it up, she saw Clyde standing there grinning. But she just scowled at him.

"You're late!"

"Well, I'm here now. You gals ready to get this show on the road?"

Bailey smiled at her father. "More than, Daddy!"

Clyde just stopped dead in his tracks when he finally got a good look at his daughter. "Wow! Honey, you look absolutely gorgeous! I know of a groom who is about to be blown away..."

"Thank you, Daddy." She paused. "Speaking of the groom, how is Cody doing?"

He laughed. "Oh, he's downstairs bouncing off the walls. He's so anxious for this to get started that he can't sit still..."

Eunice laughed. "Well, we definitely know what that's like. Bailey's been the exact same way up here..."

London checked her schedule, and turned to Eunice, Grammy, Carey and Mimi. "Time for you four to head down so we can begin seating you all. Its time!"

The four ladies nodded, and they all hugged Bailey one last time before they headed out of the room. And after they had left, Clyde turned to his daughter and smiled.

"You know, this will be the seventh time that I've had to walk a daughter of mine down the aisle and give her away. Fortunately, so far, I'm six for six in handing them over to good men. Today will make me seven for seven."

Bailey smiled. "Only three more to go then..."

He laughed. "Oh, I know. I can't wait until I got your younger sisters all married off too..."

"You will? But then you wouldn't have any of your little girls around any more to worry about..."

He smiled at her. "Bailey, you all may be growing up faster than I would have liked, and I guess I've finally learned to accept that. But there is one thing will never change - no matter how old any of you get, you'll always be my little girls, and I'll always worry about you all. But I do know that in about a half hour, I won't be the main man in your life anymore. Your husband will be as well as he should." He paused and laughed again. "Oh, who am I kidding? I haven't been the main man in your life ever since you went off to that boat. And while I know Cody and I had sort of a rough beginning, I honestly can't think of a better man to be your husband, Sweetheart."

Bailey smiled. "Thank you, Daddy. That means a lot to me coming from you. I'm glad you could finally see why I love him so much. He really is my perfect feller."

"I know. Now, come on...lets go get you hitched!"

_The Beach_

It was finally time. The moment they had been planning for and waiting for ever since Cody had proposed to Bailey from his hospital bed two years prior was actually there. All of the guests were now in there seats, and it was time for the actual ceremony to finally begin. To get things started, Brother Bob, donned in his robe and no shoes, walked down the aisle by himself to take his place at front of the assembled crowd. And once he was in position, the four piece string ensemble began playing the song indicating it was time for the seating of the grandmothers. So, with a big smile on his face and Mimi on one arm and Grammy on the other, Marcus began walking them down aisle. And once he helped them to their seats, he stepped back to take his own place next to Melanie.

Next up, it was time to see the mothers, and first up was Carey as the mother of the groom. And her escort down the aisle was Tapeworm, and following behind them was Kurt. While Kurt took his seat next to Maria, Carey remained standing at the front. And she remained there as Woody escorted Eunice down the aisle as well. Once both mothers were standing on either side of Brother Bob, they walked up to the display behind the minister. There were three tiki torches there with the one in the middle taller and bigger than the other two. (They figured tiki torches with their own fuel source wouldn't be as likely to be extinguished like regular candles would be by the wind). Both Eunice and Carey proceeded to light the tiki torch that represented their respective child and families. And once they were lit, both returned to their escorts who proceeded to lead them over to their chairs.

Once the mothers and their escorts were seated, the stringed ensemble stopped momentarily before starting up again with a different piece. And once they did, Cody and Zack new that was their cue to walk down the aisle side by side. When they reached the end, they took their places on the right side and turned to face their guests. And as he stood there with all eyes temporarily on him as the groom, Cody could help but to smile. Fortunately, everyone's focus quickly switched away from him as the quartet stopped playing again momentarily before playing yet another new song. And all eyes turned to the back as London appeared ready for her walk down the aisle. Slowly, she began her march before finally taking her place on the left side in front of the bride's side. And once she was in place, Bailey's niece and nephew began walking down the aisle as the flower girl and ring bearer. When they got to the end, the flower girl stood next to London while the ring bearer stood next to Zack. And that's when the ensemble stopped playing yet again.

And when they began playing again, everyone immediately recognized their new song as Wagner's Bridal Chorus. When the wedding guests stood up and turned their attention to the back, they saw Bailey and Clyde appear at the end of the end of the aisle. And upon seeing each other for the first time that day, Cody and Bailey could only smile at each other as they thought how beautiful/handsome the other looked. But Bailey couldn't stand there too long as she felt her father began leading her in their march down the aisle. And as they did, Cody was indeed almost speechless.

"Wow...I...wow..."

Zack chuckled, patted his brother's back and whispered to him. "Oh, come on! I thought the days of you getting tongue tied around a girl were long over! Besides, this one is about to marry you!"

Cody couldn't help but to smile hearing that. "You're right. I always think she's the most beautiful woman in the world, but wow. I truly am the luckiest man in the world."

Finally, Bailey and Clyde got to the end of the aisle, and Brother Bob finally spoke up.

"Who gives this woman to be married to this man?"

Clyde grinned. "Her mother and I do so happily and willingly..."

And with that, he kissed Bailey's cheek before putting her hand into Cody's before taking his seat next to Eunice. Now hand in hand, Cody, Bailey and everyone else turned their attention again to Brother Bob.

"Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to join together in Holy Matrimony these two young and wonderful people. Bailey and Cody have decided to commit themselves to each other for the rest of their lives, and we are here to acknowledge and celebrate that fact. Now, personally, I have had the honor and privilege of knowing Bailey for practically her whole life, and I know her to be one of the kindest, sweetest and most genuine people I have ever met. And over the past several years, I've gotten the opportunity to meet and get to know Cody as well. I find him to be a young man of high character and strong convictions.

But if I talk about them as individuals, I would only be telling you half the story. Their greatest strength comes from the bond they share and their willingness to think of themselves as a single unit. As individuals, both are strong and bright, but now that they are combined, they are even stronger and shine even brighter.

Above all, you will see two young people with good heads, better hearts and an unending love for one another. And as they have chosen to willingly enter into holy matrimony, we are here today to cement that bond between them so that it will never crack..." He turned his attention to Cody and Bailey. "As you two move on in your lives together, everyone here hopes you will have a strong and healthy marriage. And for that that, you will need mutual and total respect, endless patience, complete truth, faith and the utmost devotion between the two of you..."

Brother Bob paused and grinned. "Of course, I think I can speak on behalf of everyone here when I say you guys already have that in spades!"

After a laugh from all of the wedding guests, he turned to Cody and Bailey again and continued.

"Now, it is time for the charge, and I charge and encourage you both to remember today as the most sacred day of your lives – its the day on which you promised, before God and everyone here, that you will continue to live your lives for one another and in service of one another. You are promising to love, honor, cherish and bring fulfillment to each other's lives. Always remember that while your love for each other is pure, that neither of you is perfect. Don't be overly critical of each other where one of you might have shortcomings but rather cherish those flaws. Where one has a weakness, be a strength to them. And always remember that you two are here today because you love each other just the way you are. I ask you to always remember the words of 1 Corinthians Chapter 13 - Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends."

Cody and Bailey looked at each other and smiled. "We accept your charge and promise to do our best to always remember it."

"Good." Brother Bob smiled again. "Please take each other's hands in your own."

Bailey handed her bouquet to London and turned to face Cody. And when they were looking at each other, they both have the brightest smiles on their faces.

"Cody, do you take Bailey to be your wedded wife, and in the presence of these witnesses do you vow that you will do everything in your power to make your love for her a growing part of your life? Will you continue to strengthen it from day to day and week to week to the best of your abilities? Will you stand by her in sickness or in health, for richer or poorer, and be faithful to her and her alone for as long as you both shall live?"

Cody just smiled even brighter. "I do..." He winked at his bride. "Squared!"

"Bailey, do you take Cody to be your wedded husband, and in the presence of these witnesses do you vow that you will do everything in your power to make your love for him a growing part of your life? Will you continue to strengthen it from day to day and week to week to the best of your abilities? Will you stand by him in sickness or in health, for richer or poorer, and be faithful to him and him alone for as long as you both shall live?"

Bailey returned Cody's smile. "I do..." She winked back at her groom. "Cubed!"

Brother Bob laughed. "Alright, I was never very good at math, but I'll take those both as 'I do's..." Again, that incited more crowd laughter.

Cody and Bailey laughed as well. "Yes, those were definitely 'I do's..."

Brother Bob smiled at them. "Excellent, now before we proceed I would like to ask Cody and Bailey to step behind me and light the unity candle...err...tiki torch. By lighting it, you two are symbolizing the joining of not only yourselves together but the merger of two families into one new one."

Cody and Bailey nodded, and they walked up to the torches. Taking the individual ones representing themselves out of their holders, they jointly lit the bigger one. And immediately, the flame on it shone bright. When they returned to their places in front of Brother Bob, he grinned again.

"See, I told you all they would shine even brighter. Now, Cody and Bailey have chosen to write their own vows they would like to say to each other at this time. Cody, will you go first?"

Cody nodded and turned to Bailey. He took her hands in his again, looked into her eyes and smiled his brightest smile. "Bails, I know in the past you've told me I have a tendency to babble, and I know that you know how much I love the way you get me to shut up when I do. I also know I promised you I wouldn't pontificate in my vows today. But the fact remains that if I began describing right now all of the ways just how wonderful you are, we might still be here listening to me those five and half years later we joked about last night. And even then, I still wouldn't be able to fully say just how much I love you and what you mean to me. I will be as brief as I possibly can, but I have to confess that I had a purely selfish reason for that. You see, if I did ramble on and on, it would just take even longer until Brother Bob officially made you my wife. And I've been waiting for that moment for so long now that I refuse to wait any longer than I have to.

The first time I first saw you - the real you, I knew my life would never ever be the same. It was almost like they show in the movies where you were immersed in this aura of light and I could hear singing in the background. I know that sounds kind of crazy, but that's the way it was. I knew you were like no one I had ever met before, and I knew you were the girl for me. So, that's why I developed my six month plan – to convince you that I was the guy for you. And somehow, someone somewhere must have been looking out for me because it worked even though I thought I was failing left and right. And Bails, I'm thankful everyday that it did. You see, every day that I worked on getting you to fall for me too, I got to know you better and better. And as I did, it only made me fall even more in love with you. But it didn't stop once you were finally mine. To this day, I keep falling further and further in love with you, and I know I will keep doing that every day for the rest of our lives. I know that ever since I saw you in that hot tub that you've had my heart. And now, almost seven years later, you still have it. Bails, it will forever belong to you.

And from that day, I can only begin to scratch the surface of the impact you have had on my life. But today of all days, I have to at least try. You make me want and strive to be the best man that I can be. I know I'm far from perfect, but I will keep trying to be the perfect husband for you. Bails, you gave me the confidence that its okay to be me. You made me feel like I can be myself and that was okay. Not just okay, but you made me feel like being me was actually a good thing. You accepted and embraced me for who I was. All my life I had searched for someone to make me feel like that, and then you came along and forever changed my life. And for that, I will be eternally in your debt. And I will be eternally in your debt for you making me the luckiest man in the world by choosing me to be your partner in life. I know I'm that lucky because not only am I about to marry the world's most beautiful woman, I'm also about to marry my best friend.

But I'm not naive enough to thing that we'll never have any problems. I know we are both strong minded and strong willed individuals, and we're going to butt heads from time to time. But Bails, there is no one I would rather argue with than you. There is no one I would rather go through the highs and lows of life than with than you. Its like you told me - our life together will be a great adventure, and I'm so thankful that you will be my co-pilot through it..." He took a deep breath and let out a little laugh. "I think I'm beginning to ramble, aren't I?"

Bailey let out a small laugh too. "Maybe just a little bit..."

"Well, the most important thing I can tell you is that I love you. I loved you then, I love you now and I'll love you for the rest of our lives. You once told me that you would love me forever, and I'm going to hold you to that. I love you, Boo Boo, and I want to thank you for loving me back..." And with that Cody took another deep breath and indicated to the minister that he was finished.

Brother Bob turned to the bride. "Bailey?"

She nodded and turned back to look right into Cody's eyes. After hearing his beautiful vows, she already knew she had tears in her eyes. But she wanted to make sure he knew what she was feeling in her heart right then.

"You know, Cody Bear, it should be me thanking you. Thanking you for coming into my life and showing me everything that had been missing from it. You showed me what it was like to have someone love me so completely and be willing to do anything to make me happy. You say I let you be you, but that worked both ways. You showed me what it was like to have someone love me just the way I was. You didn't want me to be someone else, you just wanted me to be me. All of those things that I was so afraid people would ridicule me for you embraced wholeheartedly. And that caused me so much comfort and joy that I can't even begin to describe it to you know. Cody, the day I met you changed my life forever too. And like you said, I thank God everyday that I decided to go to Seven Seas High. I know you once told me that you think we would have met anyways, but I wouldn't want to give up any of that time we had together for anything.

I'll admit that when I first went to the S.S. Tipton, I wasn't looking for any kind of romantic involvement. But somehow I caught your eye, and you chased me until I finally caught you. I've never told you this before, but when we hugged after the mulch festival you put on for me, I felt something I had never felt before in my whole life. Beforehand, I might have been homesick, but being held in your arms, I knew I was home. It was a home I had never felt before, but it was one that I never want to leave.

Cody, you are as essential to me as the air I breathe. You are the yin to my yang. And like someone wise told me earlier today, it was like I was a lock and you were its key. Together, we were able to open up to each other and prove we were a perfect fit. I know it doesn't make any sense from a practical standpoint, but I believe when I was born, something or someone out there knew I was different. So, it needed to make another half for me to be complete. And about two months later, it did when you were born. I know that it took us fifteen years to finally find each other, but I was glad we finally did. For so long, I had felt like an outcast and so different from everyone else around me. Sure, people tried to understand me, and I truly appreciate them trying. But it wasn't until I met you that I found someone who could completely understand me. Not only that, but I realized I wasn't alone anymore. Sure, some people tell us that were two of a kind and the mold was broken after we were made. But you know what, I kind of hope they're right. Because as long as we have each other, nothing else matters to me."

Bailey smiled even wider. "Now, I remember you once told me that I would always be your queen. But to be a queen, I need my king. So if you don't mind, I'm hereby promoting you up from being my prince charming to the rank of king. And when I said you were my prince charming, I meant that then too. I know fairy tales aren't real, but I feel like I am living my very own one. Cody, I'm ready for our happily ever after."

She wiped away some tears. "And yeah, we had our fair share of bumps along the way, but all great success stories do. And that's what we're going to be – a success story. I know that with every fiber of my being. While we are still two individuals, we are now one with the best qualities of us both.." She paused and laughed. "I mean, look at how much you've already rubbed off on to me – I'm starting to ramble now too. But, I think that's a good thing. And I completely agree with you. Our life will be an adventure, and I can't wait to see what it has in store for us. While we may have only an inkling of what will happen in the future, I do know that every day for the rest of our lives that for sure that I will love you more and more. You may think you're the luckiest guy in the world, but I know I'm the luckiest woman. Like you said, I get to marry my best friend today too. Cody, I can't wait to have children and grandchildren with you. I can't wait to grow old with you. I can't wait to do everything with you. Today, I reiterate my promise to you to love you forever. And that leaves me with only one thing left to say..." Her voice caught again. "Thank you for loving me too..."

Brother Bob turned to Zack. "The rings, please?"

Zack reached down to untie them from the ring bearer's pillow and handed them to the preacher.

"From the earliest of times the circle of a wedding band has been a symbol of wedded love. Being one unbroken circle, your rings symbolize your unending love for each other. May your rings be a constant reminder of this to you and to the whole world of the bond you two share. Cody, place this ring on Bailey's left ring finger."

Cody took the ring from Brother Bob and slid it on to Bailey's finger. "Bails, I give you this ring as a symbol of my devotion and unending love for you. Whenever you look it, always remember that I will forever be by your side and that I completely belong to you body, heart and soul. As a ring has no end, neither shall my love for you. I willingly choose you to be my wife this day and forevermore."

"Bailey, place this ring on Cody's left ring finger."

Bailey slid the ring on to Cody's finger. "Cody, I give you this ring as a symbol of my devotion and unending love for you. Whenever you look it, always remember that I will forever be by your side and that I completely belong to you body, heart and soul. As a ring has no end, neither shall my love for you. I willingly choose you to be my husband this day and forevermore."

Brother Bob smiled again as he addressed the wedding guests. "For as much as Bailey and Cody have consented together this day to enter into holy wedlock, and have pledged such before God and all you witnesses, and have pledged their faithfulness to each other, and have pledged the same by the giving and receiving of rings, by the authority invested in me, I now pronounce them husband and wife. May those that God has joined together, let no man put assunder."

The preacher turned to Cody and Bailey and smiled. "Cody...You may kiss your bride!"

Cody grinned at him. "Don't have to tell me twice!" He turned back to Bailey before leaning in and giving her a long and gentle yet passionate kiss. And as they shared their first kiss as husband and wife, all of their wedding guests stood up and began cheering for them.

It may have taken a few minutes, but they finally broke apart from their kiss. Brother Bob just laughed. "Ladies and Gentlemen, it is now my privilege to introduce for the first time - Mr. and Mrs. Cody and Bailey Martin..."

Cody and Bailey just stood looking at their guests hand in hand as both had the biggest smiles on their faces. Their road to this moment may have had some bumps along the way, but they had finally made it.

___To be Continued..._


	26. A Look to the Future

_Episode 25 Part II_

_"A Look to the Future"_

_I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did._

_Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them._

_Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves._

_And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so..._

_The Ballroom of the Tipton Grand Hawaiian_

Even though Cody and Bailey were now finally and officially husband and wife, they didn't have any time to stop and bask in the glow of it. When the wedding ceremony had been completed, they walked back down the aisle hand in hand to the cheers and applause from their guests. But they were met at the back by the wedding coordinator who quickly whisked the wedding party away to allow the guests to begin to file out. Once all of the guests had headed towards the reception where they would pick up their complimentary flip flops, Cody and Bailey were circled back around to where they had gotten married only moments before. Before they could join their guests at the reception, they had to take the wedding pictures. And it seemed like every possible combination of people in the wedding party had a picture taken of it. Finally, it was just Cody, Bailey, the wedding coordinator and the photographer left as everyone else had headed off the the reception. But instead of having a few minutes alone, the bride and groom were put through a litany of poses of just the two of them. They really didn't mind though as they knew they would have these pictures to look back on someday.

Finally, close to 4:00, Cody and Bailey were finally finished taking pictures and released join their guests at the reception. And to another standing ovations while the song _Somewhere Over the Rainbow_ played, the bride and groom made their grand entrance. Everyone except them thought the song had to do with Bailey being from Kansas, but they both knew the true significance of that song. Cody and Bailey were lead to the head table to take their seats and joined their wedding party and their dates. Fortunately, as soon as they got there, the hotel's staff was ready to serve the reception meal. Since it only a little after 4:00, the meal hadn't been designed to be overly heavy. Plus, since the reception wasn't scheduled to last past 9:00, the plan had been to give all of the guests a few hours after it was over to enjoy Maui one final time before everyone flew home the next day.

Of course, being the bride and groom had some perks as Bailey and Cody were the first ones to be served. The wedding planner must have known what she was doing as that turned out to be a very good idea. While everyone else was waiting to get served, the head table was given the chance to eat. And the bride and groom had built up big appetites by then. By the time they had finished, they began making the rounds to talk and visit with their guests. So, for the first hour of the reception, everyone ate while Cody and Bailey went from table to table thanking everyone for coming to their wedding. And as they did, Cody was quickly realizing just how many new family members he had just acquired. While all of them gave him a warm official welcome to the family, he was doing his best trying to remember all of the names of the ones he had just met for the first time that week. Fortunately for Bailey, she didn't have quite as many new family members for her to have to remember their names. Of course, the biggest kick she got was finally getting to chat for a few minutes with her new Aunt Martha. While she would have liked to have gotten to know more why there was animosity between her and her sister, Carey, everyone was interrupted a clinking sound coming over the PA system. That got everyone's attention, and they turned to see where the noise was coming from. And standing at the head table with a spotlight focused on her, London was clinking her champagne class next to a microphone Todd was holding for her. So, once she knew she had their attention, she sat down her fork and took the microphone from her boyfriend.

"If I can have everyone's attention, its time for my maid of honor speech and Zack's best man speech. So, if Cody and Bailey will please return to their seats, their humiliation will get under way..."

Cody and Bailey just looked at each other, shrugged and returned to their seats at the head table. And once they were seated, London picked up the microphone again.

"Okay, as honored as I was to be the maid of honor, I'm even more so honored to be able to be the first to toast the new Mr. and Mrs. Martin. You see, I've known Cody for ten years now and Bailey for seven. When I first met Cody, he was this short little blonde boy with a twin brother than I could never tell apart. Well, that was until I discovered he was the Brain Boy, and I could use him to my advantage. And I did. For those of you that remember _Yay Me!_, it never would have existed if not for Cody. He was the one who was responsible for its inception. So, for six years at the Tipton and on the boat, I would use him for my own personal use whenever I saw fit. I know now that I was being incredibly selfish, but he didn't seem to mind. It would eventually dawn on me that Cody would do things to help me out like that because I was his friend.

And then there came the day where my Daddy tricked me into going to school on that stupid boat. I went from having the nicest penthouse at the Boston Tipton to having to share this tiny cabin with a complete stranger. Well, I thought I was good when I bought off my first roommate. I figured if I was going to be stuck on the ship, the very least I should have my own cabin. Well, that lasted less than a day before I soon had Bailey thrown in with me as my new roommate. I tried to buy her off too, but for some reason, she wasn't having any of it. So, I realized I was stuck, and I thought I was going to be miserable because I didn't think Farm Girl and I would have anything in common at all. Well, I'm here to admit that I was wrong. Having to live with Bailey for three years was one of the best things to ever happen to me. Sure, we had our moments, but she seemed to too accept me for who I was. And like Cody before, it dawned me on that Bailey was nice to me and helped me out because I was her friend. In fact, she's now one of my best friends in the whole world.

Well, me having friends like that was a complete shock to my system. You see, I was raised to think that the bottom line is the only thing that mattered. But it dawned on me that that wasn't the way to live. My father still lives that way, but he doesn't have anyone close to him that he thinks he can trust. I'm fortunate that I realized the error of my ways in time. I now have friends that I can count on when I need them, and in return, I know I will be there when they need me. And I know I have two true friends in both Cody and Bailey. I was happy for them when they went off to Yale together, but I didn't realize just how much I would miss them both until I didn't see them everyday. So, needless to say, knowing that I'm going to have them both back in Boston for medical school makes me extremely happy."

London turned to face them. "So, above all, what I want to say most to you two today is...thank you. Thank you both for being my friend and continuing to put up with me when you had every reason not to. If you guys ever need anything in the future, I hope you know you can come to me for help." She paused. "But, we're not here today because you two are my friends. We're here because you two love each other so much that you wanted to marry each other. Well, despite what you might think or what I might have said, I knew this day has been coming for a long time now - even before my mirror told me so. And while you two have lived your lives, you have taught me a very valuable lesson. You see, ever since I first saw you two get together, I've watched you both be so confident in who you were that you didn't care what others thought of you. You two were so comfortable in your own skins, and you didn't try to be more than who you were. You see, I always thought that I had to be what people wanted me or expected me to be. Well, when I saw you guys didn't yet had the other love you just the way you were, I got a little jealous. I wondered why you could find that and I couldn't..." London smiled. "Well, turns out you two were doing things the right way. Be yourself, and good things will happen to you. The past couple of years, I've just been myself, and my life has never been better."

She turned back to face the crowd. "But they also taught me how two people who are in love with each other should be around each other. With my parents long since divorced and my father having over two dozen wives, I didn't know. But, I got to watch you them meet and fall in love with each other the right way, and I must say, it was very interesting to watch. I saw Cody stand up for Bailey when I tried to bribe my way to the Miss Tipton pageant crown. I saw him do whatever he could to make her happy whether it ended up bringing them together or temporarily tore them apart. But through it all, they never stopped loving each other. While neither is perfect, they are perfect for each other. And, now they are married. When you see true love like those two share, you have do everything you can to help it along. I might have been a little late starting, but I hope I've done my part in doing so..." She raised her glass. "So, will everyone please raise their glasses and help me toast Mr. and Mrs. Brain Boy or Farm Girl...or Mr. and Mrs. Martin, however you want to call them."

And with that everyone toasted the happy couple. Once London was done, Zack stood up and picked up the microphone.

"Alright, for those who don't know me or can't see the resemblance, I'm Zack Martin, Cody's twin brother and best man..." He paused and couldn't help but look over at Grammy Pickett. When he saw she wasn't scowling at him, he sighed in relief. "Well, I know most of these speeches usually involve the best man sharing extremely embarrassing stories about the groom, but, I'm not going to do that. For one, I don't really think there is much I tell about the groom that the bride doesn't already know. For another, the few things she might not know about would implicate me as well, and I'd rather let sleeping dogs lie. So, Bro, just remember me doing this when it comes time for us to switch places..."

The crowd laughed at that.

"So, I thought I would go in a different direction here today. I know we don't look as much alike as we once did, but Cody and I are identical twins. Except for the ten minutes between our births, Cody and I have always been around each other our whole lives. Whether that be in the womb together or sharing a room together up until we left for the boat, I could always turn and it seemed like he was there. And even when we did go there, we were just right across the hall from each other. And as the cooler and older brother, I at times made it seem like I was happy when my brother wasn't always around. But, it was me who went to try to bring him home from math camp when it was me who was missing him. And I had to again learn to get used to him being away at Yale while he was there for college. But like London, I'm happy that he will now be back again in Boston.

And him returning back to Boston kind of makes things seem like it did when we first moved there ten years ago. Then, we were both about to begin a new school where we didn't know anyone else except each other. And now, we are both about to begin a new school in the Boston area again. But things are a lot different in other ways. For one, Cody will know someone there - his wife. And the fact that we're here for his wedding is something that would have blown my mind ten years ago. Back then, I could care less about school, was more outgoing, and was better with the ladies. Cody was smarter, more introverted, and really shy around girls." Zack paused and laughed. "Which is why its ironic that we're here for his wedding while I'm about to begin Harvard Business School in a couple of months."

He turned to face his brother. "Codester, things have definitely changed for us in the last ten years. It may have taken me a little longer, but I like to think I've finally grown up as I now take school more seriously. And I blame you for that. You had to go and rub off on to me. Well, Baby Bro, I like to think I've rubbed off on to you as well. I know I always gave you hell about whether or not I'd ever be an uncle or if you'd ever find a girl willing to date you. Well, the truth is I was wrong about that. You've always had the girls attracted to you, but you just never really noticed. And now that we're here for your wedding, I know why. You were just waiting for the right one. And almost seven years ago, you found her. And once you met Bailey, it was like no other girls even existed in the world. Broseph, from the very beginning, you fell hard, hook line and sinker. And for the longest time, I couldn't understand why. And that's where you once again rubbed off on to me.

I finally understood it myself when I met Maya a couple of years later. I finally understood what happens when you meet the one. And as I much as I hate to say it, I had no idea how to handle it. Fortunately for me, I had you there to give me advice..." He paused and looked out at the crowd. "And believe me, going to my brother for advice about girls was both surreal and slightly humiliating. But, he was right. He told me not to try to understand women, but rather, try to understand the woman you love. So, I've tried that, and I have to admit that its working out pretty well. So, whenever my brother gives me advice now, I do tend to listen."

Zack turned to Bailey. "Now, as for my new sister, I have to admit that I was a little jealous for the first little while that you two were going out. You see, I was used to constantly give him a hard time, but with you around, that didn't seem to bother him as much. But most of all, I think I kind of resented you because I thought I was losing my brother. Suddenly, Cody wanted to spend all of his free time with you, and I missed the days when it was just him and me. Plus, I always viewed it as my role as the older brother to be the one to protect him, but you slowly took over that role as well. I mean, for years, when it came to school projects, Cody and I always worked together. Sure, I probably took advantage of him a little bit, but it stung when he began choosing you to do them with instead of me. It felt like you were squeezing me out of my brother's life. But I was wrong. I wasn't losing my brother - I was in the early stages of gaining a sister. Over the years, I've learned that you are what makes Cody happy, and I want you to continue to do so. So, Bailey...welcome to the family..."

Zack turned to look at both of them now. "And now, instead of having a brother I know I can always count on, I have a brother and a sister. Broseph, while you may be a married man now, I don't think it will change you much at all. You've acted like a married man for a while now, and I don't mean that as an insult. I mean that you have been completely and totally devoted to your now wife basically since the day you met her. Sure, you two have had your ups and downs, but you managed to overcome them and be even stronger because of them. So, I just want you to remember what I told you earlier today – don't screw this up! Cody, you have a wife who is absolutely perfect for you, and Bailey, you have a husband who is absolutely perfect for you. I know I've asked before what you see in him, but I was just joking around. I know what you see in him because he is was one of the best guys I know. I hope you two know how lucky you both are to have each other. Continue to take care of each and support each other. You guys do that, and you should be just fine..."

He raised his glass. "So, if everyone will please, raise your glasses and help me toast my brother and my new sister..."

Once everyone toasted them again, Zack continued. "Now that London and I have sufficiently embarrassed the bride and groom, its time for something a little more upbeat. I've been informed that its now time for the new Mr. and Mrs. Martin to have their first dance as a married couple. And in case anyone wants to know, Cody and Bailey chose this song themselves as they felt it said everything that was necessary to say."

And with that, Cody stood up and helped Bailey up before they headed out to the dance floor all by themselves. And with everyone's eyes on them once again, she grinned at him.

"Ready to show everyone what we can do?"

He grinned right back at her. "Lets do it!"

And at that moment, the song _Amazed (any version would work, but I'm more impartial to the BOYZ II MEN version)._ As they music began playing, Cody and Bailey began dancing.

_Every time our eyes meet_  
_This feeling inside me_  
_Is almost more than I can take_  
_Baby, when you touch me_  
_I can feel how much you love me_  
_And it just blows me away_

_And I've never been this close_  
_To anyone or anything_  
_I can hear you thoughts_  
_I can see your dreams and I_

_I don't know how you do what you do_  
_I'm so in love with you_  
_And it keeps getting better yeah_  
_I wanna spend the rest of my life_  
_With you by my side_  
_Forever and ever_  
_Every little thing that you do_  
_Baby, I'm amazed by you_

_The smell of your skin_  
_The taste of your kiss_  
_The way you whisper in the dark_  
_(and you say you love me)_  
_Your hair all around me_  
_Baby you surround me_  
_You touch every place in my heart_

_Oh, it feels like our first time every time_  
_I wanna spend the whole night in your eyes_

_I don't know how you do what you do it_  
_I'm so in love with you_  
_And it keeps getting better and better_  
_I wanna spend the rest of my life_  
_With you by my side_  
_Forever and ever_  
_Every little thing that you do_  
_Baby, I'm amazed by you_

_Feels like I am so..._

_I am so amazed by your love_  
_It feels like forever inside_  
_It's almost more than I can spend_  
_And I can't control it, no_

_I don't know how you do what you do_  
_I'm so in love with you_  
_And it keeps getting better_  
_I wanna spend the rest of my life_  
_With you by my side_  
_Forever and ever (and ever), and ever_  
_Every thing you do_  
_Baby, every thing you do_  
_I'm amazed by you_

By the time the song ended, the bride and groom seemed to have forgotten they weren't alone as they just kept kissing each other over and over. And as they witnessed that, all of their guests began clinking their forks against their glasses encouraging them to continue. And they very well may have if they didn't hear a voice coming over the PA system.

"Please! We've all just eaten here!"

They turned to see London grinning at them.

"Besides, you two will have plenty of time for that later!"

They broke apart, and both were blushing a little as everyone else laughed. But Bailey leaned in and whispered to Cody. "You're right, I much prefer doing that without an audience."

He whispered back. "Me too, but I'll never apologize for making out with my wife ever..."

While they were to stay out on the dance floor, it was time for them to change partners. It was now time in the festivities for the father/daughter and mother/son dances. So, Clyde and Carey joined them on the dance floor so they could dance with their respective child. Once the new song began, Clyde and Bailey began dancing as he just smiled at his daughter.

"I had no idea Cody could dance like that..."

Bailey laughed. "Oh, he wasn't always as good as he is now. We did take some ballroom dancing classes together at Yale, but even before that, he took some lessons back on the boat just to impress me."

"Oh really? I'm kind of surprised he was able to fit those in with how much you two would study..."

She paused. "Well...lets just say he found a unique way of finding the time..."

"Well, considering where we are, I assume it did impress you some..."

"Daddy, I wouldn't care if he always stepped on my toes when we danced. That doesn't matter to me at all."

Clyde could just nod. "I know. I have to admit that when you were growing up, I always wondered what kind of guy would finally be able to tame you. But I realize I was thinking about it all wrong. You didn't need to be tamed – you needed someone who would run along side of you."

"Yeah, I guess I did. And I have that."

"I know that too. I guess I should have known the guy you gave your heart too would be different than the ones that your older sisters did and your two younger sisters seem to have. But you were always the different one, Sweetheart - well, you and your sister, Amy. But while he doesn't fit the usual mold, your husband is a good man. And now with your youngest sister heading off to join you in Boston, I'm halfway expecting her to find herself someone more similar to Cody that the rest of your brothers-in-law."

Bailey laughed again. "Well, we'll just have to see what she finds and accept it. The heart wants what the heart wants, Daddy."

He nodded again. "You're right. But while I've already asked Cody to keep an eye on her up there for me, and I'm hoping you will too. Just make sure she doesn't get herself into any trouble..."

"Daddy, I won't spy on her for you."

Clyde grinned. "Okay, fine. I'll just rely on the reports from Cody then. I may be his father-in-law now, but I can still intimidate him."

"Just trust that she knows what she's doing, Daddy. The rest of us did, and everything has worked out just fine."

"That's true."

She paused and teased him. "So, now that Cody and I are married, does this mean he and I can actually share my old room together when we visit Kettlecorn?"

He teased her right back. "I don't see why not. You're finally his wife, so now, you're his problem!"

"Daddy!"

"Just kidding. But like I've said before, you'll understand what I was feeling when you finally become a parent yourself..." He laughed. "Besides, I can't wait to see what kind of grand kids you two are going to give me..."

She laughed too. "Well, I think you'll have to wait a while for that. It won't be until have we've finished medical school at least. Probably our residencies too..."

"I kind of figured that. Well, I'm just glad you are so happy, Sweetheart. You deserve it...Mrs. Martin." Clyde paused and laughed again. "Though, now that I think about it, I do hope you two have at least one daughter. I'd love to see how Cody reacts to watching his own little girl grow up..."

Across the dance floor, Carey and Cody were dancing as well.

"So, Mom, I'm now a married man. What did you think of my wedding?"

Carey couldn't help but smile at her youngest. "Honey, it was absolutely beautiful, and I couldn't have picked a better bride for you if I could..." She paused. "But it still feels so weird that my Baby Boy now has a wife."

He just smiled back. "Thanks...I think."

"Its not that I think you having a wife is weird, but it still seems like it was just yesterday that I brought you two home from the hospital. And it seems like it was a couple of hours ago that I dropped you and Zack off at that boat." She sighed. "I just wish I had known then how much you two going there was going to change everything..."

"Why do you say that?"

"Because I would have had more time to get used to everything. Cody, you're married now, and I think your grandmother is probably right that your brother will be there himself sooner than later. Its just a strange feeling realizing that your kids don't need you as much anymore..."

"We'll always need you, Mom. Maybe not in the same ways we used to, but we still do. Besides, I know you aren't ready now, but aren't you looking forward to being a grandmother someday?"

Carey just gave him a look. "Yeah, eventually! But look at me. Do I look like I'm old enough to be a grandmother? I know I'm...in my mid forties, but I like to think I still have it!"

Cody laughed. "Mom, I don't know how to respond to that. But, you have to remember that Bailey and I won't be looking to have kids until we are at least out of medical school. But you do need to accept that the time will eventually come..."

"I know. Its just with you two off with your own lives now, I'm not sure what to do with mine..."

"You can do whatever you want with it. I know in the past I haven't been all that enthusiastic about you dating, but I really do think you should get back out into the game, Mom..." He grinned. "In fact, I can think of someone who wouldn't mind having a dance with you tonight if you were interested..."

Carey sighed again. "You've been talking with your grandmother, haven't you?"

Cody kept grinning. "I might have. But think about it this way...Mimi loves Bailey, and she loves Maya. So, she's shown so far that she has pretty good taste. Now, I disagree with her about Dad, but isn't there an old song that says two out of three ain't bad?"

She shook her head. "How do you even know about that song?"

"It doesn't matter. All I'm saying is that maybe you should give her taste the benefit of the doubt for once?"

Carey slumped her shoulders and sighed. "I'll think about it..."

Speaking of tastes though, as the father/daughter and mother/son dances were ending, the wedding cake was wheeled out from the kitchen. Immediately, everyone's eyes turned to it as they began oohing and ahhing. Chef Paulo had really outdone himself this time. It was a six tiered cake that was absolutely stunning. Cody and Bailey almost felt bad about having to cut into it, but, they did anyways. And after they had cut out the first piece of it, Cody couldn't help but notice the twinkle in his wife's eyes.

"You're not planning on doing what I think you're planning on doing, are you?"

Bailey just grinned at him. "I might be. What are you going to do if I do?"

He grinned right back. "Just remember turnabout is fair play!"

A few minutes later, both just stood there laughing as they wiped smushed cake off of each other's faces. Everyone else thought it was hilarious too - well, almost. Arturo was freaking about the possibility of them getting frosting on the dress and suit he had designed and stitched together by hand. While he made sure they weren't messed up, the professionals took over and began cutting the cake up for all of the wedding guests. And while it was being served, Cody and Bailey finally got the chance to return to their seats and sit down. And after everyone had had their share of the delicious cake, the dance floor opened up to everyone else. Since they had already danced some, the bride and groom were more than happy to sit back and watch for a little bit. Well, they did until Marcus and Melanie came over to sit down next to them.

"So, how's married life so far?"

Cody laughed. "Well, the first three hours of it have been pretty great. So, so far, I highly recommend it..."

Melanie just shook her head and laughed too. "Well, I'm glad to hear that. And it was an extremely beautiful ceremony. It's definitely given me some ideas for my own some day if you two don't mind if I borrow them."

Bailey smiled. "Please do. But here's a best piece of advice I can give you. The best part of a wedding is after its over. All of the worries about whether or not everything is going to go just right are over by then. And you can relax and really begin to enjoy it."

"I'll remember that..."

Cody grinned. "Well, I enjoyed every second of it. So, what comes next for you two? I assume you're off to law school, Melanie."

She nodded. "Yeah, I start next month. I was planning on staying at Columbia, but NYU offered me more money to go there. So, I pulled a chapter out of your books and switched allegiances. But, its still a top six law school in the country like Columbia is, so I should be all good."

Marcus grinned. "Plus, you get to stay in New York with me."

Melanie shrugged. "Well, that's a nice bonus I guess..." She paused and smiled at him. "Okay, I wasn't leaving New York regardless, but don't let that go to your head."

He laughed. "I won't..."

"What about you, Marcus? What's next for you?"

"Well, I was actually offered a slot on the comeback season of _The Surreal Life_, but I turned it down. I don't think I'm ready to be put out to pasture at 21. So, I'm actually going to start writing again. In fact, I'm thinking taking a stab at writing a second musical."

Bailey's eyebrows raised. "Oh yeah? Any ideas about a plot yet?"

Marcus nodded. "Actually, I do. I'm thinking about setting it at a high school aboard a cruise ship..."

Cody just looked at him and shook his head. "Wherever would you get the inspiration for a story like that?"

He laughed. "Oh, you know me. You know how creative I can be! Anyways, I'm even thinking of basing the characters on all of us. I mean, we have the young brainy couple, the self proclaimed ladies man who eventually meets his match, the rich hotel heiress, the strict disciplinarian with a heart of gold..." He grinned. "...the suave and smooth former child sensation and...well...Woody."

Bailey laughed. "Well, just don't character assassinate us. Other than that, I can't wait to see it."

"I would never do anything like that. Besides, we had enough crazy things that really happen to us on that boat that I wouldn't have to make up anything."

Cody smiled. "Well, just let us know when it debuts, and we'll be there for it."

"I will. But, you guys know Boston and New York aren't that far apart. I fully expect you guys to come down and visit us every so often."

Bailey smiled. "We will. Tell you what - if Valentine's weekend next February has decent weather, we'll be there."

Unfortunately for the bride and groom, more of their relatives came over and wanted to take pictures with them. So, Marcus and Melanie headed out on to the dance floor. A little while later, Cody and Bailey made their way back to their seats again to rest up after going through a second round of vigorous picture taking that day. But they weren't to be alone for too long as this time as this time it was Woody and Addison that sat down at their table with them.

Woody just shook his head and slapped Cody on the back. "Good job, Man. She's still way out of your league, yet you still got her to marry you..."

Bailey rolled her eyes. "Okay, for the last time, I'm not out of Cody's league nor is he out of mine! I really wish you guys would quit talking like that..."

Woody grinned. "Hey, I don't mean it as an insult or anything. Cody and I both know we are with ladies way too good for us. It doesn't mean we love either of you guys any less or that you guys love us any less. We just know you and Addison could do better than us."

"Well, I don't agree with that, and I don't think Addison does either! We love you guys, and to us, there is no one better for us! So, learn to accept that!"

Addison nodded. "I completely agree. Anyways, congrats to the both of you. We all knew you two would be the first ones to get married..." She grinned. "I just hope it goes better than that silly assignment we had in high school did..."

Bailey laughed. "Oh, I think it would almost have to. I'd like to think we're both much older, wiser and mature now. And I learned a valuable lesson from that and from when Cody had to take care of me our freshmen years of college when I had the flu really bad. When they say in sickness and in health, they really mean it. Besides, we plan on staying in the honeymoon phase as long as we can. As they say, the honeymoon is only over when you let it end."

"Good, I'm really glad to hear that."

Cody spoke up. "So, now that you two are college graduates too, I haven't heard what's next for you guys yet. Staying in Toledo or moving somewhere new?"

Addison smiled. "Actually, we are moving – to Hershey, Pennsylvania. I was offered a position within the company as a nutritionist. Its my fantasy job, so Woody and I decided to go for it..."

"What about you, Woodchuck? What are you going to do now?"

He laughed. "Actually, I lucked out too. Thanks to me taking over for you on _Yay Me!_, London gave me a great recommendation. So, with her backing, I secured a spot working for the local ESPN radio station in Harrisburg. So, while I won't be behind the camera for that, they do also want me to be a part time cameraman for its sister television station. I figure after working with London, there's nothing they can throw at me that will phase me."

Cody teased his old roommate. "Just remember to point the camera at the people who are supposed to be on the air and not yourself..."

"Yeah, yeah..." He sighed. "You're never going to let me forget that, are you?"

Bailey laughed. "Well, with you guys there, you guys won't be far from New York City either. We were just talking to Marcus and Melanie a little while ago, and we're going to head to the Big Apple for Valentine's Day. You guys should definitely join us!"

Addison nodded. "Yeah, that sounds like a lot of fun. That will be a good way for us to all see each other every so often."

However, they were interrupted once again. But this time, it was the father of the groom that was doing so.

Kurt grinned at his son. "Cody, would you mind if I danced one song with your new wife and my new daughter?"

Bailey smiled. "I'd love to..." She kissed Cody's cheek. "Be right back, hubby..."

He smiled back. "Well, if you are going to do that, I know of a beautiful lady I should ask for a dance myself." So, excused himself from Woody and Addison, and he walked over to his hopeful dance partner.

"Grammy...would you do the honor of dancing with me?"

She looked up at him and grinned. "It would be my pleasure to dance with my newest grandson."

Across the dance floor, Kurt couldn't help but smile at his danced with his daughter-in-law.

"Bailey, I have to thank you again. I've never seen my son look so happy as he has today, and I know you're the reason for that. Thank you for putting that smile on his face."

She grinned back. "Well, he's been putting one on mine for a long time..." She paused. "So, has seeing one Martin man go through one of these again given you any ideas?"

Kurt laughed. "Well, it might have, but Maria and I have only been together for less than two years. No need to rush anything."

"So? Sometimes you just know. I remember Cody and I talking about what our wedding would be like our junior years of high school. Even way back then, we knew this day would eventually come."

"I remember reading about that in one of his e-mails. How did the reality compare to what you two talked about back then?"

Bailey laughed. "Exactly the way I wanted it. I wanted our wedding outdoors where we could be surrounded by nature. And that's exactly how it was though having it on the beach was far more than I could have ever dreamed of..." She paused. "Of course, back then, Cody said he wanted it in the Palace at Wurttemberg in Germany..."

Kurt shook his head and laughed. "Well, I'm glad to see my son has already learned to give his wife whatever she wants..."

"Well, that was before we learned that a wedding does not a marriage make. A relationship takes a lot of work and maintenance. If its not strong, than no matter what or where the wedding is, it won't be enough to save it."

"Well, I know for a fact that you two have a very strong relationship. I just wish my mother was still alive and had gotten a chance to meet you, Bailey. I know she would think the world of you. But, if I had to guess, I'm sure she's probably been watching out for you two for a long time now wherever she is..."

"Cody's told me all about her, and I think I would have definitely liked her as well. And I hope she's keeping an eye out for us too. But as for here, I promise you I'll take good care of Cody for the rest of our lives."

"I know you will. Trust me, sometimes relationships just don't work especially when those in them want different things. Unfortunately, I know all about that. But I don't think you two will have any worries about that. You two have shared the same dreams and plans for a long time now, and they all seem to be working out for you guys."

Bailey nodded. "Yeah, but just because we're married now, it doesn't mean our plans are all done. In fact, I'd say we're just getting started with them..."

Across the dance floor from them, Cody was now dancing with Grammy Pickett.

"So, what did you think of the ceremony, Grammy?"

She smiled at him. "I thought it was just perfect. Bailey looked just beautiful, didn't she?"

He smiled back. "Yes, she sure did. But then again, I'm extremely biased and think she always does."

Grammy laughed. "Good answer. I always knew you were a smart one. And if I may say, you looked very handsome yourself, Cody. I'm sure my granddaughter would definitely agree with me on that."

"Thank you, Grammy."

She kept laughing. "So, how are you adjusting to the fact that the size of your family probably quadrupled today? Think you'll be able to handle that?"

"Well, I think I will if they just give me time to learn all of their names. Most I already know, but there are a few I just met for the first time this week."

"I know you'll do fine. So, what do you think of your new ring so far?"

Cody looked down at it. "You know, I've never worn jewelry before, so it was kind of a weird feeling for the first little while. But now, I think I've gotten used to it. Plus, I know every time I look down at it, I'll think of Bailey."

"Another good answer..." She grinned. "You're on fire today!"

He laughed. "Thank you again..."

"Now, all you have to do is be a good husband to my granddaughter. And I think I've gotten to know you well enough to do that you will. Cody, you're a good guy, and I have faith and confidence that you'll treat her right."

"Thank you once again, Grammy. I will be the best husband to Bailey that I can be. I promise to love, honor and cherish her for the rest of our lives."

"That's all anyone can ask of you. You'll do just fine." She winked at him. "Besides, look at the bright side. When you two head up to the honeymoon suite tonight, no one will wonder or worry about what you two are doing up there..."

Cody just looked at Grammy in surprise, but fortunately, an announcement over the PA system saved him from having to respond to her statement. Seems like it was time for Bailey to throw her bouquet and for Cody to throw the garter. So, both the bride and groom bid farewell to their dance partners and returned to the head table. Bailey was up first, and when it was time for her to throw it over her shoulder, all of the single women in attendance lined up to catch it. Of course, unbeknownst to the other ladies, two of them had vowed to themselves that they would do whatever it took to catch the bouquet. And when Maya finally wrestled it away from London, everyone was relieved that no one was bleeding or had had teeth knocked out.

But when it came time for the garter, things were a little different as none of the guys were as gung ho to catch it. Now, they did give plenty of catcalls when Cody dropped to a knee and reached his hands up under Bailey's dress to slide it down her leg. When he turned to face them, he had a large grin on his face as he began aiming it at several different people. And that caused them to begin ducking down behind others, but there was one who couldn't hide from him no matter what he tried. Thanks to him teaching Cody how to shoot rubber bands when the were kids, Zack could only sigh when his brother shot it right at him. As no one else was clamoring to steal it from him, he just caught it and shook his head.

With that, Cody pulled up a chair next to Bailey so that could grab a breather as Zack and Maya shared a dance as the catchers of the bouquet and garter. But like before, another couple pulled up some chairs next to them. This time, it was Gertie and Tapeworm. And Tapeworm just grinned at Cody.

"Thanks for not aiming it at me, man..."

Gertie rolled her eyes. "Well, unlike Howie, I was actually going for the bouquet, but I wasn't about to get in between London and Maya..."

Bailey laughed. "Yeah, I'm just happy no one got hurt..." She shook her head. "So, you guys ready for grad school to start back next month?"

"Yeah, I think so. It'll be nice to be back in New Haven again...even if you two won't be there."

Cody smiled. "Well, you'll still have your deluxe suite in the sky..."

Tapeworm paused. "Actually, we won't. Gertie's Dad has rented us our own apartment for next year as a graduation gift to us both. Its at the intersection of Park and Chapel."

Cody just looked at him as he thought of something. "Hmmm. Unless I'm mistaken, that will be a block away from the school of architecture, won't it?"

He sighed. "Yeah, it is..."

"So...have you already gotten on Gertie's case for having such short walks to her classes next semester?"

Tapeworm just gave him a look and slumped his shoulders. "No, I haven't..."

"And why not?" Cody teased him. "You sure did enough for us!"

Gertie spoke up. "Because I can kiss him and he doesn't care so much afterwards..."

"She has me there..."

Bailey grinned. "And there's nothing wrong with that at all..."

Gertie turned to her and grinned. "Oh, I know. I find it to be one of my most useful tools. But our new place will have a guest room, so you two will have a place to stay with us the week before Thanksgiving for the Big Game this year."

"And you two will have a place to stay with us the same time the year after. And you two are more than welcome to come up and stay with us in Boston any time you want."

Tapeworm grinned. "Just make sure you two clean up well. I have no desire to smell formaldehyde..."

Cody shook his head. "As long as you don't complain about how close our place is to the medical school..."

"You know I can't make that promise..."

Gertie sighed. "Its going to be weird not having you guys around from now on."

"We're only a phone call or a two hour drive away..."

"We may have to call you two about Halloween as well. For one, I think we may be a little too old to hang out with the undergrads at the Mortician's Ball, and two, between you two and Zack, there was always something going on to keep it interesting..."

"Just let us know..."

Tapeworm paused and grinned at Cody. "So, since you know have a wedding ring, should I start calling you Frodo now?"

Cody laughed. "Nah. I have no desire to ever destroy let alone take this ring off. I mean, its my...precious..."

Meanwhile, out on the dance floor, Zack and Maya were dancing with each other. Since they had the floor to themselves, some were watching them, but most were otherwise busy doing something else. And as they danced, Maya could resist the urge to tease him.

"Nice hands back there. You know, if Welker had hands that good, your Pats might have beaten my Giants in the Super Bowl several years ago."

Zack teased her right back. "Well, at least I didn't have to press it against my head to make sure I caught it..."

"All that matters is that Tyree did catch it..." She smiled. "Have I mentioned how handsome you looked up there today?"

He smiled back. "Well, you're not looking so bad yourself today. In fact, you look down right gorgeous..."

"Thank you. And I loved your best man speech you gave. It was just the right amount of teasing mixed with coming straight from you heart."

Zack shrugged. "Well, today is Cody and Bailey's day. As much as I like to give them pure hell, they both deserved a day like this."

"Yeah, they did. I have to admit, today has given me a lot of ideas..."

"Same here. I used to be totally anti-weddings, but maybe they aren't so bad. I mean, if you truly love someone, what's wrong with wanting to stand up in front of everyone and expressing it?"

Maya teased him again. "So, saying there may be hope for you yet?"

Zack laughed. "I think so. I could definitely see us doing something like this some day ourselves..."

She got serious. "Yeah, I can too..."

"I mean, we'd have to do something that was more symbolic for us. I mean, Hawaii was where they had their first date, not us. I guess we could do it on a submarine, but I don't think there is one big enough to fit everyone..."

"Well, when the time comes, we'll think of something..." Maya smiled. "Of course, for that to happen, you will have to ask me first..."

He teased her back. "Well, as soon as I seriously hurt myself, I'll know its the right time. I mean...look at Cody and Todd..."

She laughed. "Well, the next time you get a hangnail and have the urge, I'll be waiting..." She leaned in and kissed him. "And know that my answer will be yes..."

Zack smiled. "That's good to know. I..." He paused and frowned as he saw something. "Wait a minute! Is that my Mom sitting over there and...flirting with Arwin?"

Maya turned to see where he was looking. "Yeah, I think it is. Something wrong with that?"

"No, I just never thought I'd ever see that..." He shrugged and smiled. "Oh well, what were we talking about again?"

"Us..."

"That's right. Well, if you're promising to say yes, then I'm promising you now that I will ask you some day. I don't have a promise ring like Cody had, but I'm giving you my word."

She smiled. "That's good enough for me. Seems like while we weren't the ones who got married today, we just took a big step in our relationship ourselves."

"Yeah, I guess we did..."

Maya paused and smiled again. "How about we take another one then too?"

"Yeah? What do you have in mind?"

She leaned in and whispered her idea in his ear. And when he heard her, his eyes went wide.

"Are you serious?"

Maya just smiled. "Yeah, I am. I think we're ready, Zack."

Zack just looked at her for a moment before nodding. "Yeah, I think we are too..." He paused and grinned. "So, how about we get out of here already?"

She laughed. "I don't think we can until the bride and groom make their exit. While your speech is over, I'm sure you still have some best men duties to perform..."

He winked at her. "Maybe so, but I'll show you later just how appropriate of a name 'best man' is..."

At that moment, they heard a large clap of thunder come from outside. And Zack couldn't help himself but to laugh. "Sounds like a storm is coming. You know, I was once told storms can be very lucky things..."

Back at their table, Cody and Bailey were enjoying a brief moment of privacy when they too heard the loud clap of thunder. Both just looked at the other and grinned.

"I think you jinxed us, Cody. You said you wouldn't care if it stormed on our wedding day, and now, it looks like it will..."

He leaned in and kissed her. "I'll take that as a good omen then..."

"Me too. Like you said before, storms were always a good thing for us..."

"Except this time, I don't have you all to myself in front of a roaring fire...yet"

Bailey smiled. "Right now, I kind of wish you did..."

"Me too. And I am glad I finally have you all to myself for the first time today. I haven't had a chance yet to tell my wife just how beautiful she looks today."

"Well, if I may say, my husband looks very handsome today himself..."

She leaned in and kissed him this time. "Do we really get to spend the rest of our lives together?"

"If I have anything to say about it..."

"Same here..."

Cody smiled at her. "Think anyone would mind if we slipped out of here right now?"

Bailey laughed. "As much as I'd love to, we don't have the excuse of heading off to our honeymoon to justify it..."

"How about if I just said I wanted some alone time with my wife?"

She kissed him again. "Just like I told you when you were recovering from your surgery, you need to be a good boy and be patient. Soon enough, the reception will be over, and then we can lock ourselves away in the honeymoon suite. And just remember, you're only a few weeks away from having me all to yourself in Paris and Majorca..."

"I can't wait for either of those...Wife"

"Me either, Hubby. But until then, lets just enjoy the rest our fairy tale wedding..."

"Except that this is no fair tale. This is really happening. You and I are real. We are definitely a work of nonfiction, baby. And while it may not be a fairy tale per se, the story of us will always be my all time favorite story..."

Bailey leaned in and kissed him. "Mine too..."

Cody closed his eyes and leaned in and kissed her again. But when he finally opened his eyes, Bailey wasn't there. And he was no longer in Hawaii or even at his wedding reception. Instead, he was sitting in an easy chair, and there were close to twenty five young children all looking up at him and smiling.

"Is that still your favorite story, Grandpa?"

Cody just smiled. "It sure is. The story of how I met and married your Gramdma is the best story I've ever heard..."

___To be Continued..._

**AN: I may have some bad news. Due to my busy schedule in the real world, I haven't had a chance to edit the final chapter yet. I'll try to tomorrow or Friday. So, the final chapter may not be up until this weekend. Sorry in advance for the delay.**_  
_


	27. Bucking the Odds

_Episode 25, Part III_

_"Bucking the Odds"_

_I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did._

_Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them._

_Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves._

_And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so..._

_Cody and Bailey's Living Room, 50 Years Later_

Cody just sat back in his favorite easy chair and smiled as all of his numerous grandchildren seemed to be deep in thought as they reflected on everything he had just told them. When all of his children had asked him to keep his grandchildren entertained, he had been a little hesitant about it at first. It wasn't that he didn't love spending time with them, but with the sheer number of them combined with the fact that he was now seventy-one years old, he had legitimate concerns about whether or not he could keep up with all of them. Add that to the fact that it was a scorcher outside, and he was looking at trying to entertain over two dozen rambunctious kids without getting heat stroke. Fortunately, his older grandchildren had helped him out, and when the younger ones asked him to tell them a story, he knew just the one to keep them occupied. So, several hours later, he had told them about his life from the moment he and Zack had moved into the Tipton up until his wedding day to Bailey. And even though it was now fifty years later, it was still the best story he had ever heard.

And this hadn't been the first time he had told it, but it was the first time he had told it to all of his grandchildren. Cody was grateful for a new audience as all of his children had said they were tired of hearing it thirty years ago. So, he was glad a new generation got to hear it and hopefully learn from it. And as he watched the faces of his grandchildren, he noticed all of them seemed to light up at the same time. He just grinned thinking they had finally digested everything and realized how wonderful it truly was. But about a minute later, he noticed his oldest granddaughter, Roni, was saying something. Unfortunately, he couldn't quite make out what she was saying.

"What did you just say, Roni?"

Cody saw her lips moving, but again, he couldn't hear anything she was saying. Shaking his head, he sighed and reached for his hearing aid. "You would think in the past fifty years they could have developed a better hearing aid than this. Maybe I should have gone into biotechnologies..." After trying to adjust it, he slipped it back into his ear and turned his attention back to his oldest granddaughter. "Now, try that one more time, Sweetheart..."

But once again, he saw her lips moving but couldn't hear her.

"I'm sorry, Roni. I think this thing is on the fritz..."

"NO, SHE WAS HELPING ME HAVE SOME FUN WITH YOU, CODY BEAR!"

Cody was so startled, he nearly jumped out his chair. He began patting his chest over where his heart was and turned to see his wife smiling and laughing at him.

"Got you again!"

He shook his head. "I swear, Bails...I think you enjoy trying to give me a heart attack! Remember, I'm seventy-one years old!"

Bailey kept laughing. "Oh please. You went to the doctor last week for your yearly physical, and he said you had the heart of someone half your age! And you should! I mean, I know how well you've taken care of yourself over the years..."

"Still..."

"Uh huh. And you know I only tease you like that because its so much fun..."

Cody paused and grinned. "And I only do this because its so much fun!" And even though he wasn't quite as fast as he used to be, he grabbed Bailey and pulled her on to his lap. Once he did, she shrieked while all of their grandchildren laughed. And they laughed even harder when he began tickling her.

"Cody! Stop that! I'm seventy-one too! My bones are more brittle than they used to be!"

He laughed. "Now its my turn to say 'Oh please!'. You had your physical last week too, and your doctor said you were as healthy as a horse. Plus, you've been taking calcium supplements ever since we covered osteoporosis in medical school..."

"Okay, okay...You've made your point." She paused as she realized something. "Where is everyone else? They didn't really leave you all alone with all of our grand kids, did they?"

One of their youngest grandsons, Nick, spoke up. "They sure did, Grandma. They needed to keep Grandpa busy while they..." But before he could continue, his older sister covered his face with her hand to shut him up. She turned and grinned at her grandparents. "They all had errands to run, Grandma..."

Cody and Bailey looked at each other and smiled. She leaned in and whispered. "Are they really trying to throw us a surprise 50th anniversary party while expecting us not to find out about it?"

He whispered back. "Yeah, but they've worked so hard on it, so we have to play along..."

She sighed. "Oh, I will. I just hope it goes better than all of those Mother's Days where they tried to surprise me with breakfast in bed. Why didn't you volunteer to do the cooking for those?"

He grinned. "Hey, they insisted they do it themselves..."

Bailey shook her head. "It still blows my mind that one of our kids now has his own cooking show on the Food Network. After all of those...exotic meals, I never would have saw that coming. I thought they had all gotten their cooking skills from me..."

"Hey, I eventually taught all of them..."

"That is true..." She shrugged. "Oh well, what were all of you doing before I interrupted?"

Cody grinned at her. "Oh...our grandchildren all wanted me to tell them a story, so I did. I just happened to tell them my all time favorite one."

"The story of us?"

"Uh huh."

Bailey grinned back at him. "That's my all time favorite story too..." She paused and leaned in to whisper to him. "You didn't tell them everything, did you? You know...you did leave out certain things like everything that happened in Virginia, right? Their parents would kill you if you didn't..."

Cody laughed. "Of course I didn't tell them everything. I kept everything rated PG and left out a few things out that they didn't need to know about."

She sighed in relief. "Good...We had to give our kids the talk about the birds and the bees, and I wouldn't want to deprive them of the chance to do the same with theirs."

Bailey was about to say something else when their oldest grandson, Tommy, spoke up. "So, Grandma, where were you earlier?"

She turned and smiled at him. "Oh, I had an old friend of your Grandpa's and mine ask me to do a house call this morning."

"Was everything okay, Grandma?"

She smiled at Tommy. "Yeah, the little girl had fallen down and scraped her knee. But she'll be just fine after I washed it out, put some Neosporin on it and then bandaged it up the wound. Of course, after that, London made me check out her other grandchildren while I was there..."

Cody shook his head and sighed. "Doesn't London know that you've been semiretired for 10 years now and fully retired for 5?"

Bailey smiled. "I think she does, but when it comes to the well being of her grandchildren, she only trusts me to do it. Besides, you know as well as I do that all of our friends have asked me to be the pediatrician for their children and their grandchildren. I've always been humbled and honored by that..."

"I know, but couldn't you have taken our youngest daughter with you and try to ease London into accepting her as the new pediatrician for them?"

She laughed. "Hey, I've been trying that since she graduated from medical school about ten years ago..."

He was about to say something when they heard someone clear their throat. Turning, they saw their grandchildren smiling at them. "So, Grandma, since you're here now, you can help Grandpa finish his story. What happened after you two got married?"

Bailey smiled again. "Well, after our wedding, we had a wonderful time on our honeymoon before we came back here to Boston to begin medical school over at Harvard."

"And then what?"

Cody answered. "Four years later, we graduated."

"And that's when Grandma became a doctor for kids?"

Bailey nodded. "Yeah, I did. I accepted a residency over at the Children's Hospital of Boston. Two years later, I accepted a full time position at the Tipton Clininc."

Their oldest granddaughter, Roni paused as she thought of something. "How come you didn't become a real doctor like Grandma did, Grandpa?"

He smiled. "I did, Honey. In fact, you could say I was twice the doctor your Grandma was."

Bailey rolled her eyes. "Oh please!"

Cody laughed. "Well, its technically true! Not only do I have an MD like you do, I also have a PhD as well..."

Their oldest grandson Tommy grinned. "Yeah, because you started doing research on all of those cool diseases, right Grandpa?"

"I sure did, Tommy. For a long time, I wondered what my chosen field of specialty would be. And despite your Grandma's and our friend Maddie's attempts to get me to go into obstetrics, I declined. But our first year of medical school, I really enjoyed our class in microbiology. So, with your Grandma's blessing and encouragement, I applied for and was accepted into Harvard and MIT's joint program where I got my MD and a PhD in virology. So, just like I said when I was about your age, I did get a degree from MIT too..."

Bailey shook her head. "And for the past forty-four years, you've kept reminding me of that fact."

He tickled her again. "Hey, I was just trying to prove I was a good catch for you. How many people do you know that have two bachelor degrees from Yale, an MD from Harvard and a PhD from MIT?"

"Yeah, yeah..."

"I encouraged you to go for a PhD with me."

She smiled. "I know you did, but I rather be treating patients than spending my days looking through a microscope..." She paused and whispered to him. "Though, I'll never complain about how doing that made your right hand so strong..."

He laughed. "Behave yourself..."

Roni spoke up again. "So, when did you start teaching at Harvard then, Grandpa?"

Cody paused to think again. "Let me see. I believe I was thirty one when I accepted their offer. For the longest time, I was the youngest person on their faculty..." He paused and teased his wife again. "And that would have still been true if I could have convinced your Grandma into joining me there. Harvard offered her too, but she turned them down."

"Why did you do that, Grandma?"

Bailey smiled again. "Like I said, I felt I would be more useful if I stayed on the front lines and actually got to treat children. Of course, it didn't hurt that at the same time Harvard offered me that position, the Tipton Clinic also offered to make me the chief of pediatrics in waiting. And five years later, the current chief retired, and I was there to take over. I like to think that under my watch that we were able to make a difference in people's lives."

Cody shook his head. "Don't listen to her, kids. Your Grandma is being way too modest again. Under her tutelage, the Tipton Clinic pediatrics department became the best one in the country. When it came time for them to expand, they even named the new pediatrics ward there after her..."

She wrapped her arm around her husband. "Now your Grandpa is being the modest one. They named the new ward after the both of us. After all, neither one of us would have gotten those once in a lifetime offers if we hadn't made our joint discovery a couple of years before..."

Roni spoke up again. "Do you mean when you two found a cure for the common cold?"

Bailey smiled at her. "Yeah, that's exactly what I was talking about. And I must say, if it wasn't for your mother, it would never have even been on our radars."

"What do you mean, Grandma?"

"Well, your mother, Dani, was our first child. And when she was about six months old, she got this nasty cold that she just couldn't seem to shake. Naturally, we were worried about her, and we tried all of the normal treatments for it. Unfortunately, none of them seemed to work. So, your Grandpa and I even took her to some specialists, but they all said it was just a nagging cold that would go away eventually..."

Cody spoke up. "And when we told this to your Great Grammy Eunice, she told us to try some old homemade remedy that had been in her family for a long time. Well, it completely blew us away when Dani's cold was history within 48 hours of us trying it."

Bailey laughed. "And knowing your Grandpa and I, we began looking into it trying to figure out how that had happened. Trust us, finding time to do that while we had a six month old and another one growing in my belly..."

Their granddaughter, Kaylee, interrupted her. "Was that with my Mommy?"

Bailey smiled at her. "Sure was. Anyways, to simply things, we discovered that two of the ingredients in the homemade cure had these proteins that one would block the cold virus from finding anything to feed off of while the other would attack the virus itself."

Cody continued. "So, once we discovered that, I took my findings to my boss at the Tipton Clinic. You see, I was working there too in the sub basement where they did all of their research. Anyways, a long story short, he told me to go talk to Wilfred Tipton and see what he thought. Fifteen minutes after I showed up at his office, he threw me out the door and told me to get to work on it. Mr. Tipton was seeing dollar signs, so he even said he would finance my research on it. And in our spare time, your grandmother and I continued to work on it as a team. She would review the findings I had and would make suggestions on how to improve upon it. Two years later, we got FDA approval to begin doing testing on human subjects. The rest, as they say, is history..."

"Wow..."

Tommy laughed. "So, that's why you guys are so loaded right now, right?"

Bailey nodded. "Well, it did bring with it a rather large windfall that was split between us and Mr. Tipton. We even got pats on the back from him as he said he always knew him investing in our educations would eventually pay off. And even though he only gave us a third of the all the profits it generated, we ended up making more money off of it than we could even begin to think of spending in ten lifetimes."

"So, all of you have your future educations paid for, so I want you all to go to school where ever you want to go." Cody paused. "Though, there is a new Martin wing of Berkeley College at Yale if any of you decide you want to matriculate there..."

Tommy grinned. "It must be nice to have all that money. I'm going to be rich like that myself someday and buy anything I want!"

Cody turned to Bailey and whispered. "I know they are just fourteen, but are we sure its a good idea for him to be dating London's oldest granddaughter?"

She laughed. "We'll worry about that later..." She turned back to their grandchildren. "So, once it became a huge success, we knew we would be able to take care of our family for the rest of their lives. With money no longer an issue, we could have as big of a family as we wanted."

Roni spoke up again. "Yeah, about that. In grandpa's story, he said you both wanted six kids. But we all know that you two ended up having seven. What happened there?"

Cody laughed. "Easy. We defied the odds once again..."

"What do you mean?"

Bailey smiled. "Well, our plan was to have six. We got lucky that your Grandpa graduating with his PhD coincided with me finishing my two year residency at the Children's Hospital. So, we decided then we were ready to start our family. And almost a year to the day of his graduation, we welcomed our first child to the world, your mother, Danielle Veronica Martin. We both liked the name Danielle, and Veronica was the first name of my Grammy. So, we gave it to your Mommy, and she passed it on to you..."

"Cool! So that's where my name came from!"

Cody smiled. "Exactly. Your great great Grammy was one special lady. And you, Sweetheart, remind me of her more and more each day." He paused. "Though, I still wonder if we cursed Dani or if we somehow knew what her future held for her..."

"What do you mean, Grandpa?"

"Well, her initials were DVM, and she became a veterinarian. Like the medical degrees we have are called a MD, the degree for a veterinarian is a DVM - Doctor of Veterinary Medicine. So, again, we either influenced her future career by naming her what we did or we somehow knew she was going to be a vet."

Bailey shook her head. "Ignore your Grandpa. Sometimes, he tends to over think things. Anyways, a little over a year after she was born, we welcomed our second child..."

Kaylee spoke up again. "My Mom..."

"Right. Eleanor Miriam Martin. We both liked the named Eleanor for some reason, and we gave her the name Miriam after your Grandpa's grandmother. And she has turned out to be an awful lot like her namesake. She's now one of the nation's foremost interior decorators, and people swear by her taste..."

Cody mumbled. "Except she absolutely adored her Grandpa Kurt..." He shook his head. "Speaking of Grandpas though, I still remember the look on Clyde's face when he told me I now had two daughters. It was like he was more giddy about that than the fact that he had a new granddaughter..."

Bailey laughed. "Well, it turned out he was right about a lot things he warned us about. Anyways, we waited two more years before we welcomed our third child to our family, our first son..."

Tommy grinned. "My Dad!"

"That's him. Of course, when it came time to name him, we realized we had unknowingly created a pattern. You see, my first name is Bailey, and your Grandpa's first name is Cody. Well, I'm two months older than your grandfather. Without realizing it, by age in our family, we then had a name starting with B, one with C, one with D and one with E. So, we thought it was a cute pattern and went with it. So, that's why your Dad's name is Franklin Zachary Martin. Franklin because it started with F, and we both were big fans of Benjamin Franklin and FDR who we both thought were two of the greatest men in American history. And his middle name was Zachary after your great uncle Zack."

Cody laughed. "And the faces when we announced we had a boy couldn't have been more different. My brother was humbled we named our child after him, and my father-in-law seemed almost disappointed that we had a son..."

"Well, we had one, and he went 0 for 10 in having any of his own. But he quickly got over it, and he and little Frankie quickly became big buddies."

"Yeah, they did. And Frank was this close to being the first Martin in our branch of the family to be born in Scandinavia since Knut and Olaf were wrongfully banished from Martinsgrab..."

That caught Tommy's attention. "He was?"

Bailey nodded. "Oh yeah. We had to go to Oslo, Norway to receive a very prestigious award, but at that time, I was over eight months pregnant with your Daddy. Well, even though I couldn't fly then, nothing was going to stop me from being there. So, Wilfred Tipton put us on one of the S.S. Tiptons, and we sailed over there on it. Two days after we got back, my water broke."

Cody wiped his brow. "Yeah, we really lucked out there. And Frank took after me, and he is a gourmet chef in his own right. He owns four restaurants now, one here in Boston, one in New York, one in Miami...and one in Kettlecorn."

Bailey laughed. "Hey, that place is making a killing! People come from all over to eat there, and its boosted Kettlecorn's economy. Frank is a local hero around there, and everyone there watches his new cooking show whenever it comes on."

"I think its good that he has a show now. I remember helping him out when he got his first restaurant off the ground here in Boston. Ordinarily, Frank is the most even tempered person in the world, but when someone would screw up, you should have seen the look on his face when he glared at them..."

Tommy laughed. "He tries the same with me when I get in trouble now, but my Mommy told me Dad was all bark and no bite."

Bailey shook her head. "Anyways, two years later, we bucked the odds for the first time when we had our twin boys, Geoffrey Clyde and Harrison Kurt. And like your Grandpa and your Great Uncle, they were identical twins who ended up being nothing alike. We named Geoff after one of our favorite authors, Geoffrey Chaucer and my Daddy, and we name Harry after..." She sighed. "...Harrison Ford and Cody's Dad."

Cody laughed. "Oh come on! The man brought both Han Solo and Indiana Jones to life! Besides, we did name him properly too. Harry is now a professor of archaeology at Yale. Which is kind of ironic since the last Indiana Jones movie used Yale to substitute for the university Indy taught at!"

She kept shaking her head. "Whatever. But while both we bright students, Geoff decided to focus his career on sports..."

"Well, fortunately for him, he got my love of hockey and your actual athletic abilities. He actually got a cup of coffee with the Bruins before he decided to retire. Now, he's a higher up in their front office."

"That's true. And Zack takes advantage of the free tickets as often as he can."

Roni spoke up again. "That's all nice and everything, but none of that explains how you two ended up with seven kids instead of six."

Bailey smiled. "I was just about to get there. The twins left us with five kids, and we knew one more would make our family complete. And when I got pregnant the sixth time, we both agreed that would be our last one. Well, we bucked the odds once again. The odds of us having two straight sets of twins are astronomical, but we did. But our final set of twins were a fraternal set of girls. That's why one of them, Isabella Caroline, has dark hair, and the other one, Josephine Eunice, has blond hair."

"And like the first set of twins had the middle names of their grandfathers, this set got their middle names from their grandmothers. Our baby girls really took after us. Izzy is a medical researcher like I was, and Josie is a pediatrician like your Grandma..."

Their grand kids all nodded before Roni spoke up again. "So, that was it? No more kids?"

Cody laughed. "Yeah. After the last set of twins, your Grandma made me get a..."

Bailey cut him off. "Yeah, that was the last ones for us. While we wanted six, we always heard seven was a lucky number."

"Which was just fine with us. I now have two baby girls instead of just one."

She shook her head. "Sweetie, they'll both be 35 this year. They're not babies anymore."

"They'll always be my little girls."

Bailey couldn't help but laugh. "Even though you two are as different as night and day, you sound just like Daddy did when he talked about his girls..."

He gave her a look. "Well, who do you think taught me everything I needed to know about having daughters?"

"That's true I guess..."

Tommy spoke up again. "So, tell us what happened to Uncle Zack and Aunt Maya..."

"Well, Zack did actually graduate with his MBA from Harvard. And unlike he had feared, he didn't graduate dead last in his class. Actually, he graduated in the top half of it. Yeah, he was the last person on the list who could say that, but its true nonetheless. Anyways, he kept working at London Inns, and when Moseby finally retired, he took over as CEO of the company. And when Mr. Tipton and Mr. St. Mark both finally passed, all three hotel chains - London Inns, Tipton Hotels and St. Mark Hotels - were merged under the same corporate umbrella, and Zack was named CEO of that as well. In fact, he just finally retired himself a couple of months ago. May 31st was his official last day as CEO. London and Todd's oldest son officially became the new CEO on June 1, but Zack had taken him under his wing for the past ten years and prepared him to take over much like Moseby had done for him."

"And Maya did graduate with her bachelors and doctorate in physical therapy. With backing from her parents, she set up her own physical therapy center here in Boston that became very successful. Since then, it has expanded to several other cities here in the Northeast as well as in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Dallas and Miami. Maya's father's connections helped filter some pro athletes towards her, and like he had always told her, if you do a good job, word of it will spread fast. So, she did, and it did. She's now retired as well as one of their daughters now runs the company."

Cody laughed. "Though, her face was priceless about twenty years ago as she almost had a total meltdown. Maya had personally helped rehab the Red Sox then first basemen, and helped him come back from his injury well ahead of schedule. And he was able to return to the Sox by the end of the year and ended up hitting the home run in the ALCS that knocked her beloved Yankees out of the playoffs..."

"Speaking of getting hurt, did Uncle Zack have to get hurt himself before he proposed to Aunt Maya?"

Bailey laughed this time. "Well, sort of. The winter before they graduated, we had all gone back down to visit with your Great Grandpa Kurt and Great Gram Marie, and your uncle was planning on proposing on New Year's Eve at midnight. Well, that afternoon, he cut his foot on a seashell in the sand and had to go get stitches. So, he was on crutches, and your Grandpa and I had to fight to laugh at that because we knew what he was planning on doing. Naturally, Maya said yes, and then proceeded to tease him unmercifully about him finally getting hurt before he proposed."

Cody smiled. "Yeah, the look on his face when the doctor fitted him for crutches was priceless..." He paused. "But not quite as good as when his and Maya's fifth child was finally a boy. He pulled a play out of my playbook and ran out of the hospital and shouted for the world to hear 'Its a boy! Its finally a boy!" He turned to Bailey. "I keep telling you – Zack having four daughters was karma!"

She laughed again. "It had to be. But, I'm glad it did because we have four beautiful nieces - Allison Julia, Natalie Caroline, Rachel Antonia, and Marianne Bailey. Their middle names came from their grandmothers, their grandfather, and...me."

"Sweetie, as honored as you were, nothing will top the look on Moseby's face when Zack announced he named his youngest daughter after him. He was completely blown away."

"That's true. And when they finally had a son, Zack returned the favor and named him Jackson Cody. Cody after you, and Jackson was as close to Zack, Jr. as Maya would let him name their only son."

"Well, Maya had to enunciate when she yelled so she could differentiate between Zack and Jack. Anyways, Maya runs that family with an iron fist. When your Great Uncle Zack began getting a gut again, she immediately put him on a diet again. And even before his hair began thinning, she made him begin using Rogaine every day. I'm sure Zack's thankful now since he still has a full head of hair..."

"I'm just glad she was able to change the vision London had of the future. Thanks to her, the worst thing we ever found in our couch cushions lately have been our grand kids' toys and pacifiers..."

"You and me both, Sweetie...you and me both."

Roni spoke up again. "So, what all happened to all of your friends from when you guys were younger?"

Bailey paused. "Well, let's see. I guess I'll start with Woody and Addison. They did move to Hershey, Pennsylvania, and they were the second couple among us to get married about a year and a half after we did. The were married right after Christmas back in Addison's hometown in Michigan. After that, their lives were going pretty normal until they hit a rather large Powerball jackpot..."

Tommy laughed. "Did they actually check their numbers unlike that one idiot Grampa was telling us about earlier?"

Bailey laughed. "Oh yeah, you could definitely say they did. In fact, Woody was actually working one of the cameras when the drawing took place. He had one eye in the camera and one eye on their ticket. And when he saw that they had won, he went kind of crazy and turned the camera on to himself. He was jumping up and down about winning and made quite the spectacle of himself...before he quit right there on the spot."

Cody sighed. "I warned him about doing that..."

"Can you blame him for what he did? Anyways, they then had enough money so they never had to work ever again, so they didn't. And with nothing tying them down to central Pennsylvania anymore, they actually decided to move here to Boston to be closer to all of us. While their kids were young, they both were full time parents. But when they got older and began school, things got interesting. Addison took a position as a health teacher in the same school Emma Moseby was principal at. Having their winnings, she didn't have to worry about her teacher's salary being enough to live on any longer. And Woody? Well, he finally got to live out his life long dream and became a hot dog vendor on the streets of Boston. It was your Uncle Zack going to his cart every day that got him in trouble..."

Cody paused. "Though, I have to give Woody credit. When Steve needed an operation, Woodchuck was the bigger man and stepped up to the plate and paid for it. After that, no one would ever let Steve give him a hard time ever again. If he tried, Woody's siblings would give him a guilt trip about how he had saved Steve's life..."

Bailey gave him a look. "Even Willa too?"

He shrugged. "I would assume so...if she ever stopped attacking a plate of ribs like a pack of wolves or scratching the athlete's foot on her feet." He shuddered. "Almost fifty-five years later, and that still makes me nauseous to think about."

"I'll take your word on that. Moving on, next would be Marcus and Melanie. They got married the same summer as your Uncle Zack and Aunt Maya about a month earlier. Marcus continued writing shows for Broadway and eventually won several Tony Awards..." She paused. "Though, I still wonder about some of the casting choices he made for his play about all of us on the boat. The girl he picked to play me had never done anything professional beforehand, but she's had a nice career since. And I think he picked the twins to play you and Zack just because they had been in an Adam Sandler movie..." She shrugged. "Anyways, Marcus never did go on the Surreal Life as his career was rejuvenated. And while he was doing that, Melanie got a job from a very surprising source – Maya's father. She became an agent herself until she retired about five years ago. And she represented more than just athletes as she also had entertainers as clients that she met through Marcus."

Cody nodded. "Which brings us to Tapeworm and Gertie. They got married the summer after they both got their masters degrees. Tapeworm was going to stay in school and get his doctorate, but he was offered a position with the Department of Defense in Washington..." He paused. "It must have been an offer he couldn't turn down as he accepted it. We aren't quite for sure what he did for the government exactly as it was all very top secret. Anyways, when he accepted that, they moved to southern Maryland just outside of DC. That was fine with Gertie as they were only an hour away from where she grew up, and she joined an architecture firm there. She had hoped being so close, she could convert him to being a Ravens fan, but it didn't work out. But, about five years later, her career got a huge shot in the arm. London asked her to make a pitch for the new Tipton resort on the Las Vegas Strip, and she loved Gertie's ideas. Just like that, she was hired away to become the new Tipton/St. Mark/London Inns corporate architect. And that worked out perfectly for Gertie as she could now work from home, so they began having their family then too."

"Yeah, it did." Bailey paused. "Then there is your Great Aunt Amy. When she got up here to Harvard, she still had no idea what she wanted to major in, so she took classes to see what interested her. Turns out she took to sociology and psychology like a duck to water. Eventually, she got PhDs in both, and is now a best selling author. Amy continues writing books about the relationships between men and women..."

Cody laughed. "Yeah, never saw that one coming..."

Bailey shrugged. "Well, I think she did a lot of her own research with her relationship with your Great Uncle Adam..." She laughed. "Which if you think about them, its kind of ironic."

"How so, Grandma?"

"Well, Amy always told me that she wanted to find her own guy like your Grampa here, but I didn't know she was so serious about that. You see, Adam was born in Seattle and came to Boston to go to school."

Cody frowned. "Hey, there is nothing wrong with that! I liked Adam from the very beginning! He's a real good guy..."

"I'm not saying he isn't. But think about it, Sweetie. Born in Seattle. Moved to Boston. Became a doctor. Who does that sound like to you?"

Cody paused to consider that before he grinned. "Well, maybe its just you two Pickett girls that guys like me are drawn to? I mean, no offense to my other brothers-in-law, but it was nice to have another guy in the family who was more like me..."

Bailey laughed again. "Yeah, Daddy mentioned that as soon as he met Adam for the first time. Of course, by then, you had already blazed the trail of being different, and that made things a lot easier for him."

"Maybe." He turned back to their grandchildren. "I guess next up would be London and Todd. They too got married..." He paused. "...and had their first child seven months later..."

"Which London says came premature..."

Cody just looked at her. "Sweetie, you're a pediatrician. Premature babies don't come out weighing over nine pounds..."

Bailey smiled. "I know, but that's her story, and she's sticking to it. Anyways, from there, London became a super Mom. Her kids became her permanent pet projects. She became the president of their PTA and totally revitalized it."

"You can say that again. Bake sales will never be the same again. And then she got Arturo to design a line for a fundraising fashion show. It was then I realized how much trouble I was in..."

"What do you mean?"

He smiled. "Bails, you were still the most beautiful woman I had ever seen. But in a tie for second close behind you were our daughters Dani and Ellie. I realized then I was in store for a lot of sleepless nights once they became teenagers."

She gave him a quick peck on the lips. "And you handled all of that as well as I could have hoped. Anyways, I guess after not having close relationships with either of her parents, London didn't want that to happen with her own kids."

"True, and they are all very close now. Todd continued being a dentist till about ten years ago himself, but its not like he ever needed the money from it to live off of. Now with their kids all grown and out on their own, he and London constantly travel around the world – when they aren't busy babysitting one of their grandchildren..."

Bailey nodded. "Which I guess just leaves us with Maddie and Trevor. They even one upped us and had eight kids of their own. Trevor eventually became editor in chief of the Boston Globe while Maddie was the VP of marketing for London Inns..."

Cody just shook his head and laughed. "And the ironic part is that while Maddie did get a little more conservative as she got older, Trevor grew a little more liberal. Now, they practically agree with each other on everything. Both are now middle of the road now which was passed on to all of their children. My goddaughter Zoey is now the Congressman in our district." He paused and laughed again. "I just wonder if any of our kids remember their first babysitter is now in Congress."

Tommy spoke up. "With so many kids, did you guys ever have a nanny?"

Bailey shook her head. "Nope. Well, not really. When your Great Grandma Carey retired from the Tipton, we hired her to watch our kids during the day. She refused to let us pay her at first, but we insisted."

"Plus, once I took a professorship at the Harvard Medical School, I then had the summers off to be around to watch them too." He grinned. "The one added perk of your Grandma's and my discovery was that I wasn't put under the pressures of publication or perish. So, while the kids were out of school for the summer, so was I..."

Bailey sighed. "That was the only reason I almost reconsidered accepting a professorship of my own."

"Cool story, Grandpa and Grandma." Roni paused. "You think me and my friends will all stay as close as you guys did?"

"I sure hope so, Sweetheart. Good friends are hard to find. When you are lucky enough to find them, hold on to them for as long as you can."

Bailey spoke up. "Okay, you guys. Enough story time for now. Why don't you all go get cleaned up while I talk to your Grampa..."

Grumbling, the kids all got up and began leaving the room. Before he left though, Tommy paused and turned back to look at his grandparents.

"Did you two have any more wild and crazy adventures in medical school and afterwards?"

Cody smiled. "We sure did, but those will be the story for another day."

Once Tommy shrugged and walked off, Cody turned to Bailey.

"Okay, you told them you needed to talk to me. What about?"

"First, does anyone know about our other plans for today?"

"Only Roni and that's because she agreed to come over and feed our cats while we're away..."

"Yeah, that makes sense. Speaking of our cats, where are they?"

Cody laughed. "Probably under our bed hiding. When they saw our horde of grandchildren coming, they both darted off so fast, it wasn't even funny. I think they've learned how the kids like to pet them way too hard and yank on their tails..."

"Hopefully, they grow out of that..."

"They will. Now, what did you need to talk to me about?"

She grinned. "About this..." She leaned in and gave him a passionate kiss. "I've been wanting to do that again since this morning..."

He grinned back. "Well, by all means...do that as many more times as you want..."

Bailey giggled. "I'm just glad your mustache doesn't tickle me any more..."

"Hey! I did offer to shave it off for you..."

"I know, but I have to admit that I do like the look of it on you..."

Cody just gave her a look. "More than the monocle, huh?"

"Well, I can't help it! You looked like a combination of the Monopoly guy and Mr. Howell from Gilligan's Island..."

He smiled. "Well, I have no problem wearing glasses now because you do too." He paused. "I just kind of wish you wore them earlier..."

She gave him a funny look. "Why do you say that?"

"Bails, I can't explain it, but they look just so sexy on you..." And with that, he began kissing her neck.

"Cody!"

He grinned again. "What? I told you I was going to find you utterly desirable when we were old and gray. Well, I wasn't lying..."

"I know." She smiled. "You have any idea how good it feels to know that you've never stopped chasing me around?"

"You know how good it feels that you still let me catch you? I admit, when you were pregnant, it was much easier to corner you and get you in my clutches..."

Bailey laughed. "I remember. For a seven year period, I was pregnant more than I wasn't. I knew from Momma that it wouldn't be so bad, but I'll never forget what London told me..."

"What's that?"

"Well, when I first met her and told her I had nine sisters, she told me that my Mom needed a new hobby. Well, when I got pregnant the fifth time with our second set of twins, she told me the exact same thing..."

Cody laughed. "Well, that is and will always be my favorite hobby. I don't plan on ever giving it up!"

"Me either..."

Bailey leaned in and kissed him again. And it was getting a little hot and heavy when they both heard someone else clear their throat. Both turned to see their oldest daughter standing there with her arms crossed and just shaking her head at them.

"Hey...Dani."

She sighed. "Do you two ever give it a break? I swear, I saw that enough growing up!"

Cody grinned. "I said it on our wedding day, and I'll say it again now. I'll never apologize for making out with my wonderful wife ever..." He winked at his daughter. "Besides, and no offense to you or your sisters or my granddaughters, but your mother is still the most beautiful woman in the world to me..."

Dani just shrugged. "I guess that's a good thing. I just hope my husband looks at me the same way you look at Momma when we're your ages..."

"He better if he knows what's good for him!"

Bailey laughed. "I'm sure he will, Sweetheart."

"Well, if I can get you two to disembark from each other long enough, all of us kids want to take you two...out for a lunch to celebrate your 50th wedding anniversary."

Cody shrugged. "I guess we can do that. That shouldn't interfere with our plans for later..."

Dani frowned. "Plans for later? What plans for later?"

Cody ignored his daughter and smiled at his bride. "Shall we then, Sweetie?"

She smiled back. "We shall. We can resume what we were doing later when we're all alone..."

Dani rolled her eyes. "Momma! I would really rather not know things like that!"

_The Boston Tipton_

About an hour later, everyone was gathered in one of the large ballrooms at the Tipton Hotel. When they had walked in, Cody and Bailey had feigned being caught off guard when everyone shouted out 'SURPRISE!'. Once that was out of the way, they found themselves standing in a welcoming line as their guests lined up to wish them congratulations on their milestone. And when most of their guests has passed by and made their way over to the buffet table, Cody felt someone slap him on the back.

"Hey Nerd! You seen Cody?"

Cody turned, saw his brother and sighed. "What do you want, Zack?"

Zack paused. "I forget..." He paused again before grinning. "Nah, I just wanted to congratulate you two on fifty years together..."

"Well, thank you..."

He began laughing. "I mean...Bailey, how did you manage to put up being married to this guy for fifty years?"

Bailey decided to tease her brother-in-law right back. "Probably the same way Maya has put up with you for almost 47 years..."

Maya laughed. "She's got you there, Zack..."

Zack rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah. I'm just glad I'm actually an uncle. Though, I do miss watching you two drive around that big extended van to haul around all of your kids. That was pretty hilarious..."

"Well, most vehicles don't hold nine passengers especially with several of them in car seats." Cody smirked at brother then. "But, it couldn't have been funnier than seeing Allie go off on you when she had discovered you had dragged me along to help you spy on her first ever date..."

Maya sighed. "I thought she was going to kill you two..."

Bailey laughed. "I just wish it hadn't given Cody the idea to do the same thing with our daughters. Who do you think he dragged along on those secret missions?"

Cody just looked at her. "I didn't see you laughing when you made me do the same thing when it was our sons' first dates..."

"Yeah, well...that was different. I wanted to make sure they were behaving as gentlemen around girls like their we had taught them to."

Maya laughed this time. "Well, anyways, its good to have you guys back in Boston again full time."

Zack smirked at his brother and sister-in-law. "Yeah, it must be so rough to move to St. Maarten a couple days after Christmas every year and then move back up here at the beginning of May..."

Cody smiled. "Hey, its just like Dad told us. A lot of people from up here move down south during the winter. We just happened to choose St. Maarten because we could by a beach front property a lot cheaper than we could in Miami. Besides, I don't seem to remember you complaining when you guys would come down to visit us there."

"Yeah, like I was going to turn down a free place to stay in the Caribbean!"

"Zack, you were the CEO of a company with several resorts down there. You always had a free place to stay down there..."

"What's your point?" He shook his head. "I still don't see why you two two just sell your house here and move down there full time..."

Bailey shook her head vigorously. "No way! Never happen! I love having Thanksgiving and Christmas morning in our house surrounded by all of our kids and grand kids. I'll never give that up! Besides, ten bedroom houses aren't that easy to sell..."

"More like a mansion. I like to call it Stately Martin Manor..."

Cody sighed. "Well, since Bailey and I always had to share a bedroom growing up with one of our siblings, we wanted all of our kids to have their own bedrooms. One for each of them, a master one for us and two guest rooms down in the basement makes ten bedrooms."

Bailey continued. "And add that into the fact that our house is an original Gertie Gaines Wiznewsky design, we'd never get anywhere close to what its really worth even if we were inclined to sell it..."

Zack shook his head again. "Yeah, but its just you two and Cody's minions from hell living there right now..."

"They're not minions from hell. They are cats, Marie and Pierre, and just because they don't like you is no reason to bad talk them." Cody just grinned. "Besides, they did love scratching up the magazine with your picture on the cover. Congratulations again on your first appearance on the cover of _Resorts & Great Hotels_ magazine, Zack."

Zack just looked at him. "Go ahead and rub it in..."

"Would I ever do that? Just because it has a smaller circulation than that archaeology one I used to..."

Zack cut him off. "Of course you would rub it in! Just because you two got lucky and made your little discovery, you two got that stupid award and were on every magazine cover around here for a while..."

Bailey laughed. "Zack, that stupid award was the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine. It was a pretty big deal..."

Zack sighed. "Well, at least you two only got the one you shared. Back in high school, I thought you two might have gotten more individually. Still, you two shouldn't have..."

Before he could continue, he was cut off my a loud yet feeble voice. "What are you two arguing about now?"

The four of them turned and saw a very old Carey rolling up towards them in her Rascal. She just shook her head at them.

"I swear, you're both 71, and you still act like you are both still 11 sometimes..."

Both of them sighed. "Sorry, Mom..."

About that time, Carey found herself surrounded by an entire horde of young children, preteens and teenagers. And when she saw them all, her eyes went wide as she began smiling.

"There you all are!"

"Great Grammy Hawkhauser! We've missed you!"

Carey began hugging them all too. "I missed you all as well! You all know I can never get enough of all of my great grandchildren!"

Zack whispered to Cody. "This coming from the same woman who went into a funk when she found out she was going to be a grandmother for the first time..."

"Tell me about it..."

Soon enough though, the surprise anniversary party was in full effect and it began to resemble their wedding reception a little bit. Yes, there was a cake, and once again, Cody and Bailey cut it together. But this time, they didn't shove it into each other's face. And there were no formal toasts or first dances. Rather, the highlight of it was when Cody and Bailey addressed their guests towards the end of the party.

Bailey smiled. "Thank you all for coming today to help us celebrate. Fifty years ago today, Cody and I got married in Hawaii. And while there are no palm trees outside, I think its as warm today as it was then..."

Cody smiled. "And my bride is just as beautiful to me as she was that day too. Just like then, I still can't resist her."

She laughed. "I feel the exact same way about my husband. In fact, our oldest daughter Dani reminded us earlier today that our shows of affections for each other were constantly a source of embarrassment to our children growing up. Well, Dani...Ellie...Frank...Geoff...Harry...Izzy...Josie...we still won't apologize for that. We both hope all of you are still as much in love with your spouses as your father and I are when you've been married for fifty years..."

"But we want to thank you all for throwing us this surprise anniversary party. We really do appreciate you doing that for us. And if the powers that be are willing, I hope we can buck the odds again and be here again in fifty more years to celebrate our hundredth anniversary."

Bailey laughed again. "That would be something, wouldn't it?"

Cody laughed too. "Sweetie, if we are, there will be someone from Guinness Book of World Records here with us..."

She kept laughing. "Very true, but I can still hope we are because I want fifty more like these past fifty. But, I would be lying if I said these past fifty years were the best of my life..."

Everyone kind of gasped when she said that, but Bailey kept smiling. "...because I would then be ignoring the seven years before then, and I would never do that. Apart from a few stupid, stubborn months, I couldn't have asked for a better 57 years than the past 57 years of my life. But maybe we were right when we said those were good for us in the long run. Because since then, Cody and I have have always maintained our focus and never took our relationship for granted. We've never forgotten that we were a team or what was most important to us – each other and our family." She turned to Cody. "I know I say this every year on this date, but I'm so lucky to have you."

He smiled. "And I'm so lucky to have you too..." He leaned in and kissed her.

As they did, their guest began clapping for them until Cody and Bailey finally pulled apart. And when they did, Cody smiled again.

"Unfortunately, we'd both like to stay and continue to celebrate with all of you, but we have to get going. We have a plane to catch in a couple of hours..."

And with that, they made their exit as they shook hands with everyone as they did. Of course, when they got to the door, Zack and Maya were there waiting on them.

"A plane to catch? You two going somewhere?"

Bailey grinned. "Yeah, we are. We're catching a plane and heading back to Hawaii. It was an anniversary surprise from Cody. We plan to be there before midnight local time so we can renew our vows again at the very same spot we gave them fifty years ago. And then on Monday, we're meeting up with the S.S. Tipton VI and going on a three week second honeymoon..."

Cody grinned too. "We even reserved the honeymoon suite at both the Tipton Grand Hawaiian and on the boat. Besides, we're retired, so its not like we have anything else better to do..."

Zack just looked at them. "Well...Maya and I are both retired and having nothing better to do either. That all sounds like a lot of fun. Mind if we come along too?"

Bailey and Cody just looked at each other and began laughing. "Yes, we do mind. We may be going on a 50th anniversary cruise, but this time, its just going to be just the two of us!"

_The End_

**AN: Sorry this took so long to get posted. I was planning on doing it on Sunday afternoon, but I was offered a free ticket to go see The Dark Knight Rises. And much like Heath Ledger did with the Joker, Anne Hathaway pleasantly surprised me with her performance as Selena Kyle. Anyways, I've left this open for a sequel, and I may eventually get around to doing one. I'm not sure what my next project will be or when I will have the time to really get into one. But, I will be back with more stories some day.**


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